THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, June 18, 1995 TAG: 9506160022
SECTION: COMMENTARY PAGE: J4 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Short : 47 lines
We may not be ready to slam the golden door in the face of would-be Americans, but a Commission on Immigration Reform wants to allow fewer newcomers to pass through.
The recommendations include reducing the legal immigration quota by 33 percent - to 550,000 a year. And the makeup of those admitted would shift. The lion's share of immigration slots - 400,000 - would be reserved for the spouses and minor children of legal immigrants already in the country.
Another 100,000 would be admitted if they were college educated and had valuable skills that employers claim they can't find in the domestic work force. Preference would be given to entrepreneurs. Unskilled laborers would be unwelcome. A final 50,000 openings would be reserved for refugees fleeing dangerous conditions abroad.
This issue is making strange political bedfellows. President Clinton has tentatively endorsed the proposals as ``pro-family, pro-work and pro-naturalization.'' Many conservatives also approve and Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, is introducing a bill with similar provisions.
Yet Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., and House Majority Leader, Dick Armey, R-Texas, find themselves in rare agreement. Both oppose the reforms as unfair scapegoating of legal immigrants for problems they don't create and worry that such strictures will deprive the economy of important new blood.
It's certainly true that reform of legal immigration will do nothing to address the far worse problem of illegal immigration. Nevertheless, it is not clear that millions of new immigrants annually are now needed or can be assimilated.
It is perfectly apparent that unskilled workers in a technological age are a growing problem and we have a home-grown oversupply that needs to be trained for a more demanding workplace. Admitting even more from overseas, except for humanitarian reasons, makes no sense.
In short, a move to admit fewer immigrants and to insist on higher job qualifications suits contemporary circumstances. Such reforms should be approved. So much for the easy part. Now, where are the proposals to deal with the flood tide of illegal immigrants? by CNB