Trump answered the immigration question perfectly

OPINION:

Answers often depend on who is asking the questions. In the context of formulating America’s immigration policy, the left has always been convinced that it has the right query: How do we use immigration for our own benefit?

Although they don’t publicly disclose it, the left also has answers — dangerously wrong ones. For them, mass immigration is a means to incubate future voters. It is a labor pool to replace American workers, a safety valve for Third World nations to send citizens they cannot support or do not want, a social justice initiative allowing churches, nongovernmental organizations and politicians to virtue signal and fundraise and a means to achieve a nonconsensual makeover of the U.S., leading to a balkanized, leftist-led empire of competing identity groups.

Indeed, the left came close to achieving its objectives. President Joe Biden’s border crisis unleashed a staggering magnitude of consequences at every level of society. Americans were shocked by daily accounts of an almost unfathomable reality: 18.6 million illegal aliens residing in the U.S., costing taxpayers $151 billion annually, even as hundreds of thousands more continued to pour into the U.S. each month, most simply released into the country.

Municipalities such as Chicago and Portland, Maine, incurred financial strain as migrants arrived unannounced, destitute and unskilled, while violent crime by illegal aliens skyrocketed and dominated daily headlines in some areas.

With alarming numbers, costs, crime and inaction, compounded by local public officials determined to worsen the problem by enacting sanctuary policies, it was no surprise that immigration became a top issue for voters. In the 2024 presidential election, they recognized that Donald Trump was the right man at the right time (yet again) because he understood the fundamental question that lay at the heart of solving America’s immigration crisis: What is the purpose of immigration, and what are the principles around which our policies and laws should be made?

In principle and deed, President Trump has also demonstrated that he knows the right answers, believing first and foremost that immigration is a discretionary social policy designed to serve our broad national interests. Those interests include balancing the supply and demand for labor by limiting foreign and illegal competition, protecting national security and public safety, ensuring that our limited social service resources are not depleted by excessive immigration levels, protecting our natural resources and energy supplies, and ensuring that immigration levels never exceed the rate of assimilation.

Mr. Trump understands that immigration policy should be based on fairness, the rule of law and the principle that a sovereign American nation has the right and the responsibility to limit immigration and control its borders. In a nutshell, “Serving the broad national interest” is the right answer (one can synonymously substitute Mr. Trump’s “America First”). We concur. Immigration policy that prioritizes Americans has been the raison d’etre of the Federation for American Immigration Reform’s founding and mission for 47 years.

Yes, the borders need to be secured, laws must be enforced, those who violate them should be removed, and local and state sanctuary policies that incentivize and reward illegal immigration must be stopped. Yet our immigration solutions and problems may just rinse and repeat with each subsequent administration unless Americans insist that elected public officials acknowledge their understanding of the basic principle underlying immigration: policies and laws that serve the broad public interest.

Fidelity to that idea ensures that Americans — not business lobbies, illegal alien special interests or political parties — are recognized as the true stakeholders. It also prevents another Biden-like border calamity from being inflicted on future generations.

“Serving broad national interests” or “America First” aren’t just catchy, contemporary phrases; they were core concepts in the founding of our nation and must be the essential, abiding principle behind an orderly, safe and beneficial system of immigration today and tomorrow.

• Dale L. Wilcox is executive director and general counsel of the Federation for American Immigration Reform in Washington.