The DREAM Act proposed by Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is bad for America. It would grant green cards and eventual citizenship to nearly two million illegal aliens, even though it would cost American taxpayers billions of dollars.
The plan could open the door to chain migration, which would allow millions more foreign nationals to come into the United States. That means more people competing for jobs with American citizens, leading to lower wages and fewer opportunities for hardworking Americans.
It is wrong that people who broke our laws should be rewarded with citizenship while those who followed the law are left behind. We should not encourage illegal immigration by granting amnesty through this act.
We must also consider the financial impact of such a policy. According to current estimates, the amnesty could cost taxpayers up to $115 billion when factoring in costs related to healthcare benefits like Obamacare. The Congressional Budget Office has also estimated that one in five DACA illegal aliens will end up on food stamps and at least one in seven will go on Medicaid after an amnesty is granted. This would put an additional burden on our already strained budget.
Instead of rewarding illegal immigrants, we should focus on fixing our broken immigration system so that all immigrants have a fair chance of becoming citizens if they follow the law and work hard for it. We can also invest more resources into border security so that fewer people attempt to enter illegally in the first place.
America has always been a nation of immigrants who respect our laws and make their own success stories come true through hard work and determination—not through breaking them or getting handouts from government programs like the DREAM Act proposes doing.
