Why the Immigration Bill is Good for Democrats

In order to begin a "path to citizenship" program, which will take about a decade for qualified immigrants once it takes effect, Democrats had to agree to fund $40 billion in border security. Those of us who believe undocumented immigrants who are living, working and contributing to society here in the United States should be awarded citizenship, just as our Anglo ancestors did for more than two centuries, generally don't believe all of that money should be spent for "security."

Some immigration advocates now oppose the legislation. Leaders of Presente.org, the nation’s largest online Latino advocacy organization, took the step of opposing the broader immigration bill altogether, saying in a statement they could not “in good conscience” stand by it if it is also “guaranteed to increase death and destruction through increased militarization of the border.”

However, the legislation now stands a much better chance of passage than ever. And, if it doesn't become law now, it will likely be a minimum of four yours and very possibly longer before Democrats and Republicans come this close to agreeing about immigration reform.

Let's take what we can get now, including the $40 billion to "militarize" the border, and fix it later.

What everyone seems to be overlooking is that Republicans forced the government to not pay it's bills for a time, allowed government to go over the "fiscal cliff," and forced implementation of mandatory across-the-board cuts to government programs through the sequester.

The Republican rationale for these economically damaging efforts that harmed the entire middle class was that they would not support spending unless an amount equal to that being spent was cut from the budget.

Have you heard any similar opposition to spending $40 billion on border security? Of course not.

Republicans are climbing over each other to see who can spend the most money for fences and border guards and other ridiculous "security" measures to show their base voters how tough on immigrants – especially brown ones from the south – they can be.

As of June 24^th, Republicans in congress had a 26% approval rating. Last week, Speaker John Boehner lost control of the Tea Party wing of the Republican Caucus and was unable to prevent them from killing the farm bill, which mostly benefits Republican farmers in the nation's heartland – and in many states that will be home to contested congressional campaigns in 2014.

The farm bill is just one of the many missteps Republicans have made this session that have ended up going against the interests of their own constituencies. Now, with Republicans throwing billions at the border without any concern for offsetting cuts, how can they legitimately make the same argument the next time the Democrats or the President put forward a spending plan? They are in the process of giving away their leverage when it comes to offsetting spending with cuts.

The 2014 congressional campaigns have already begun. The Republicans have bungled relationships with their traditional constituencies, including those who fund their campaigns. Their approval ratings are eight to ten points lower than Democrats and seventeen to twenty points below those of the President. And, there is almost a year for the Republicans can continue to dig themselves a deeper hole before congressional primary elections.

In short, the Republicans are in the process of imploding. They are giving away their credibility on balancing spending with cutting. It's entirely possible that the Democrats in congress can pick up seats in 2014. When that happens, Democrats can cut funding and "demilitarize" the border, while freeing up about $20 billion or so to fill gaps in social programs the Republicans have made over the last two years.

Let's hold our noses and work to get the current immigration bill through the congress. The dividends down the road are enormous.