WASHINGTON, D.C. — The economic and public safety threats to Americans of the Trump administration’s immigration approach are becoming clearer.
Take reports that have emerged just this week.
When immigrants fear reporting crimes, domestic violence goes unnoticed and local law enforcement cannot target criminals as effectively.
Undocumented immigrants who don’t have the opportunity to become licensed and insured raise safety risks for other drivers.
Moreover, American workers and our economy are not better off under Trump’s immigration policies and proposals.
The Trump administration’s proposals — to say nothing of policies already implemented — would affect American institutions such as colleges and universities, industries in which foreign-born workers complement American workers, and ultimately our economic prosperity as a whole.
Increases in costly and unsustainable immigration detention are another way in which enforcement-centered policies cost Americans. While arrests of undocumented immigrants have risen steadily under the Trump administration, deportations have decreased because of immigration court backlogs.
President Trump also is looking to limit legal immigration pathways by nearly 50 percent, which economists say would take our economy backward. Already, businesses need more workers to thrive.
“The administration’s enforcement practices and proposals are putting America on an unsettling trajectory that risks undermining our economy and safety,” said Ali Noorani, Executive Director of the National Immigration Forum. “We cannot restrict economic growth by falling for nativist rhetoric. We cannot harm public safety by creating an environment where immigrants fear reporting crimes. Arresting more immigrants and holding them in costly detention centers is not sustainable.
“We need policies that recognize immigrants as contributors to public safety and a healthy economy for all American workers.”