This country wasn't founded on immigration through the merit system and I don't think it behooves this country to try and let merit-based immigration engulf other immigration. I am fine with the Statute of Liberty poem for the most part, so long as people are coming here legally. I am fine with more legal immigrants and more refugees. I'd rather have more people in the system than just as many total people with a lot of them trying to stay outside the system.

I do favor legal immigration over illegal immigration. In fact, I don't favor illegal immigration at all. I don't want to build a wall, but I do believe in employing technological means to improve border security and make illegal crossings much more difficult. That said, I also favor increased humanitarian aid in ways that are targeted to reduce the flow of asylum seekers and illegal immigrants.

Tanq - I don't practice immigration law at all. I have heard things like what you suggest and I think the asylum system is not functioning well. Too many applicants that take too long in the system. I don't have the expertise to make suggestions on how to improve the system. I do think there are plenty of legitimate asylum requests. I also believe in improving our border situation in a way that treats asylum seekers and even people seeking to cross illegally who are caught in a humane and compassionate way.

I am sympathetic to the dreamers as it is no fault of theirs that they were brought here as children and largely consider themselves americans, so I favor something that legalizes their presence and gives them a quick path to citizenship. I agree that dreamers in particular who serve in the military should be fast-tracked even more.

But while a discussion on immigration is fine and dandy (and is something we have done before on this board), that doesn't change the way the current administration has handled immigrants from the south. And this discussion of what the USA's immigration policy completely ignores what the current administration has done. My point was merely that I consider this administration's handling of immigrants from the south to be a foreign policy failure.