No, Mr. Calderón, U.S. doesn't invite illegals
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 07.08.2007
Mexican President Felipe Calderón is a lot like an uninvited dinner guest who arrives empty-handed and has the gall to complain about the food. When the immigration-reform bill collapsed on June 28, he wasted no time criticizing the Senate's "grave error."
He warned that "by closing the door to legal immigration, the only thing the U.S. Senate is doing is opening the door to illegal immigration, which is precisely what Americans do not want."
Pass the potatoes, Mr. President, and kindly listen. Yes, Americans are sick of this problem, and many shared your desire to see the reforms pass. But the Senate isn't the one opening doors to illegal immigration. It's Mexico.
Congress and the White House have spent decades trying to close those doors, only to be frustrated because Mexico refuses to do its part.
Where were Mexico's police during the early 1990s, when crowds regularly stood on the border firing shots or pelting the Border Patrol with rocks as officers attempted to stop nightly swarms of illegal migrants?
Why is Mexico's government so quick to threaten lawsuits against American landowners who, awaiting the Border Patrol, detain illegal immigrants caught trespassing on their property?
Mexico complains about the plight of migrants' trekking through the desert and dying of thirst, so why has it not done a better job of stopping them before they cross?
Recently, the Mexican Embassy in Washington opposed the U.S. construction of a border wall, saying it "does not advance the climate of cooperation and co-responsibility . . . nor does it offer a solution to deal effectively with the problems we share."
If Mexico had shown true cooperation and co-responsibility in fighting illegal immigration, the wall would not have been necessary. Mexico could start by fixing what Calderón, as a candidate, described as the immigration problem's main cause: chronic underemployment and poverty.
Mexico's time for finger-pointing is long past. We welcome a realistic solution from Calderón that includes creating jobs in Mexico so its citizens will want to stay put. Take that step, Mr. President, and watch how quickly the climate of cooperation returns. |
