About that bipartisan Senate border proposal

Earlier this week, a bipartisan Senate border proposal surfaced and then failed, after being negotiated for three months. But we want to tell you about it anyway. 

First, the current state of our border is unsustainable. No one thinks that waves of asylum seekers making a dangerous trek to our border is the best scenario for anyone. We need a secure border, but we also need a humane border. 

The proposal does represent a significant investment of the types of resources necessary for a more timely response to the new reality of global migration. However, we have grave concerns about the proposed changes to asylum and the treatment of desperate migrants seeking refuge. 

Here are a few things NOT in the proposed (now dead) bill.

• There was no solution for those who hold DACA status - if the bill passed they’d continue to live in limbo.

• There was no modernization of our farm workforce to meet the needs of farmers and those seeking work.

• While there is a small increase in the number of visas available in coming years, there was no comprehensive reform of our legal immigration system which has not been updated in decades. 

As Stephen wrote recently, no matter what the bipartisan agreement contained, focusing solely on asylum and border enforcement does not deliver the changes needed to solve the problem. 

It is a good sign that Republican and Democratic Senators were willing to sit down and try to hash out a proposal that addressed the problem in a way that at least some members of both parties could support. They should be applauded for their efforts. But just because a proposal is bipartisan does not make it just. 

Ultimately those working to try and find solutions to a humanitarian emergency lost out to those wanting only to win elections. This is our real crisis.