CONTEMPORARY CASES IN PUBLIC POLICY - Essay Example

The assumption is based on the argument that all industrially developed countries largely depend on immigrants to meet their workforce needs. However, many people argue that growing immigrant population has been stealing a notable percent of Americans’ jobs and this situation would adversely affect the overall economic development of the country in the long run unless the immigration policy is well revised. Considering all changes in the economic profile of the country and the challenges facing the conservative business models, innovative thoughts in this regards are of prime importance now.

Policy change efforts in this regard should focus on illegal immigration also as one of the most potential issues today in the American political economy. The Problem & Evidences Immigration policy has been a bone of contention in the U.S political economy for decades. However, policy makers tend to converge at the point that in order to curb illegal immigration and to ensure border security, top foreign talent has to be invited to the country. The recent developments in policy formulations indicate that visa application process have been made more technical to address undocumented immigrants.

Some statistics will reveal the intensity of illegal immigration as a potential issue. . According to the report of FAIR (2005), every year 730,000 American workers get replaced by illegal immigrants, and this causes a loss of $ 4.3 billion a year. All these indicate the need for some policy reforms. As a recent development, an enforcement-heavy approach and Secure Communities Programs have been initiated under the Obama administration. As part of the enforcement approach, the U.S has increased the number of Border Patrol Agents more than ever before.

The Secure Communities Program entitles local authorities to collect and share fingerprints and other sensitive information with the Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) agency to check the candidates’ criminal records and status to seek possibility for expulsion. Admittedly, many of such reforms have evoked wider criticism from all sides. In addition, many are against the social services offered to the illegal immigrants on the basis of amnesty. The first and foremost problem according to them is that offering social services will attract more and more illegal immigrants into the nation thus weakening the already collapsed American employment sector.

According to one study, the benefits enjoyed by illegal immigrants from the federal government far outweigh their contributions to the society; and the contribution from the illegal immigrants comes mainly in the form of payroll taxes, which is about $ 7 billion in a year (Camarota 2004). However, it is found that the benefits enjoyed by the illegal immigrants in the form of “Medicaid use, treatment for the uninsured, and participation in food assistance programs” amount to about 17.4 billion dollars (Ibid).

However, opponents argue that these immigrants often do works for lower wages, and a considerable proportion is