The RAISE Acts FAILs

The introduction of the Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy (RAISE) Act bill introduced by Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR) and David Perdue (R-GA) and endorsed by President Trump FAILs as immigration policy.

Family values are dishonored because the RAISE Act excludes “parents” from the category of “immediate relatives.”

The RAISE Act strikes the phrase “children, spouses, and parents of a citizen of the United States…” and inserts the phrase “children and spouse of a citizen of the United States.” The exclusion of parents from this category is truly an attack on families because it forces family members, including parents, brothers, and sisters to live apart, perhaps for their entire lives.

Acts against long standing principals of inclusion and diversity in the United States of America

What happened to our principals written on the plaque at the base of the Statue of Liberty that reads: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Inconsistent with needs of U.S. business for highly skilled workers and low skilled workers and inconsistent with this administration’s practices

First, the H1B worker visa program the ‘merit based’ system would encourage is under attack by this administration. Second, the bill would eliminate the lower skilled H2B worker visa that the administration recently recognized employers needed with increased visa allocations.

Lies to us all by falsely arguing that it is Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy

Among other things, the RAISE Act:

· Aims to cut immigration by at least half from current levels without a reasonable correlation to family reunification or the economic needs of our nation and which would mark a major shift in U.S. immigration law.

· Creates a “merit-based” system that fails to take into account the needs of U.S. businesses.

· All but eliminates family-based immigration, by restricting U.S. citizens and permanent residents to sponsoring only spouses and minor children for green cards.

· Reduces the number of refugees admitted to the U.S. to 50,000 per year, contrary to our nation’s proud tradition of serving as a beacon of hope for people fleeing persecution.

· Ends the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program which has awarded 50,000 green cards annually to people from countries with historically low rates of immigration to the U.S.

THE IMPACT OF A POINT-BASED IMMIGRATION SYSTEM ON AGRICULTURE AND OTHER BUSINESS SECTORS By Stuart Anderson