Tancredo’s immigration policy is wrong for America

Re: “Trump’s immigration plan puts Americans first,” August 20 column

I am writing in response to “Trump’s immigration plan puts Americans first.” I agree with former Rep. Tom Tancredo that our current immigration laws do not serve the best interests of the American people, but that is where our shared views end.

Studies, including a recent study led by Robert Adelman, a sociologist for the State University of New York, have found lower crime rates among immigrants. When crimes are committed against undocumented people, they are afraid to involve law enforcement. Our broken system is putting immigrants at risk — not the other way around.

The current system makes it difficult to seek documentation and it is hurting people — like the woman seeking a domestic violence protection order who was detained, the woman grabbed out of a hospital room while waiting for surgery or the many children who have had to say goodbye to a parent through a barred window. I do not want to live in a community where we allow this kind of callous treatment.

Whether someone was born here or came here seeking safety and a better life, they deserve respect. We simply must do better. Instead of perpetuating hateful rhetoric, we need to fix this system because it does not serve the interests of anyone and simply does not reflect our values. Karla Gonzales Garcia, Denver

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Tom Tancredo needs to stop by the countless Colorado businesses desperate for low- or semi-skilled employees in fields like construction, retail, and senior care before supporting un-American legislation to cut immigration levels in half, and restrict what remains to Ph.Ds and the like.

In one paragraph, Tancredo implies that immigrants work too hard, causing a “negative effect on the job market.” In the next, he im- plies immigrants don’t work hard enough, burdening the welfare state. Which is it, Tancredo? As much as we’d like to curtail government spending, “printing multiple copies of government literature in different languages” isn’t exactly a budget buster.

Tancredo quotes President Trump’s support for severely curtailing low-skilled and familybased immigration. But Trump’s actions speak louder than his words. He’s received hundreds of immigrant work visas for service employees at his Mar-a-Lago resort and other properties. And, this month his in-laws became U.S. citizens through the very “chain migration” he decries.

Halving immigration levels would be a major self-inflicted wound on the American economy and a betrayal of its founding principles. Republicans should oppose efforts to do so. Jordan Bruneau, Washington D.C. Editor’s note: Bruneau is a senior policy analyst at the Becoming an American Initiative.