Illegal Immigration

I’ve been avoiding the subject of President Bush’s plan to allow illegal immigrants to stay in the U.S. if they took jobs Americans don’t want. I’m torn between criticizing it as an American and the view of it from a Christian perspective.

I’d heard rumors about Bush’s plan a month ago, and I wrote a “letter” to the White House, stating I wouldn’t vote for him if he did whatever he was going to do. He did it, sort of. While Bush is not opening the floodgate to allow illegal immigrants into the country, he’s not deporting those already here, either. That’s a problem.

The results of the latest Gallup Poll show that the majority of Americans oppose Bush’s plan.

Thus it’s clear that the current public opinion environment is one in which Americans are fairly negative toward immigration, which in turn suggests that this is not a particularly propitious time to attempt to convince Americans that illegal immigrants should either be allowed to become citizens or to stay in this country under a new, legal status.

The plan won’t confer citizenship upon illegal immigrants, however. That’s one consolation.

I was dismayed after reading an article by Heather Mac Donald, “The Illegal-Alien Crime Wave.” She writes about how ham-strung the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) is when it comes to getting rid of foreign criminals. It’s a long article, but I highly recommend it. It made me very angry, so I’ll warn you that the news is dire.

Gang members who’ve been deported sneak back into the country, but the LAPD can’t ask criminals for their immigration status, as is the case in many jurisdictions. This is a stark example of wrong-headed liberal policies that daily threaten the lives of us all.

A bunch of pointy-headed talking heads sit around in their comfortable offices and come up with dangerous policies like this to make themselves feel good. Mac Donald’s piece is like the sickening sight of turning over a rock and watching the bugs scatter from underneath it.

The illegal alien crime wave isn’t unique to places like Los Angeles. In the northwest area of Washington, D.C., where I happen to live, Hispanic gang activity is a growing epidemic. And according to the latest statistics, over 25 percent of the federal prison population are illegal immigrants. But they all come here to work, right?

Which brings me to how I should view the plan as a Christian. People who come into the country illegally are flouting the rule of law, and Christ never told people to break laws unless they violated God’s laws. I’m torn about this, so I ask you to weigh in. From a Christian perspective, how do you view illegal immigration?