“We should be the pro-legal immigration party. A party that has a positive platform and agenda on how we can create a legal immigration system that works for immigrants and works for America.” This was a quote by Florida Senator Marco Rubio pertaining to the issue of immigration. When it comes to immigration, there are many things that have to be considered. What country the person is loyal to is among those questions. In many cases, there is always some loyalty to the country that they came from. The thing that has to be remembered is that there has to be allegiance to the United States, since this is the country that they want to call their new home.
One way that this can be done is to make it mandatory for anyone that wants to earn citizenship in the United States to do at least four years in the Unites States military. If they are made to show that they are loyal to the United States through their military service, it would make it to where they would have to be loyal to be able to live in the United States. It would also make it less likely that a terrorist would even consider the idea of becoming a Unites States citizen.
When it comes to the idea of serving in the armed forces, it would handle the issue of immigrants getting here and needing assistance for medical, dental, financial, and schooling needs. It would force them to have to earn their funds, but it would offer them the basic needs that they would need to help them build a new life in America. This would also help to loosen the burden of there not being enough people in the military to be able to handle the issues that may arise. There have been issues, for decades, of the military being short staffed. This would lighten that burden, plus it would also make it more efficient to be able to ensure that there is work for the individuals that come here from other countries, along with the people that are born in the United States.
One thing that would have to be considered a change for the citizenship process is the test. If there is still such a strict testing process, it would make it more costly to continue to do this plus to make the person serve in the military. There are many people that are born in the US that would not be able to pass the citizenship test. The score needed for any immigrant on the test to be able to become a US citizen is to answer six out of ten history and civic questions correctly. They must also be able to speak, read, and write at least one sentence of English.
Many of the questions that are asked on the citizenship tests are so hard that most people in the United States could not pass the test. I think that it would be a better structure to have the test possibly is a way to knock of a two year period from the mandatory military time. If they do not want to test or if they fail the test, they would have to serve for a period of four year, but if they do pass, it would knock it to where they would only serve a two year term in the military. This would force them to have to work for the immigration benefits that they are getting.
One of the biggest issues that many people in the United States complain about is the workforce not having the jobs to support current citizens, yet there are many illegal immigrants that are working for the local farms and factories. While this is illegal, many companies are still found to do this, because they feel that it will save them money in the long run. By forcing them to serve in the military, it would not only put them into work, it would offer them more incentive to be able to better provide for themselves and their families. Also, it would remove much of the illegal workforce and force companies to follow the law and hire people for the regular minimum wage and offer things like workman’s compensation.
It would also help in lowering the high statistics associated with apprehending illegal immigrants. In the year 2010, there were 516,992 apprehensions of illegal immigrants. Out of the number of people apprehended and detained, about 61 percent of them were Mexican . This number would drastically be reduced by lowering the necessity of the testing and placing a military term on entrance into the United States. More people would also find that they would be better accepted by the communities that they move to, because they would be considered veterans of the military. This would also allow them the same benefits that the regular military veterans have.
It is believed that the idea of immigrants in the military is good for the purpose of redefining the language barrier. They are able to help to interpret vital information between military leaders and the locals in the area. Without immigrants serving in the military, it would be almost impossible for there to be a guarantee that the information being gathered from locals is accurate. By allowing the immigrants the chance to serve, there is a better chance of making sure that the information is correct.
As it stands currently, only legal permanent residents are allowed to serve in the military, and the males between ages 18 and 25 also have sign up for the Selective Service. Also, on a voluntary enlistment, there are roughly 8,000 noncitizens per year that choose to enlist in the military . This number would drastically increase if it were to come to the idea that the person would be allowed to become a US citizen as a result of their military enlistment.
The only issue that has been found with the idea of having a noncitizen decide to join the military is that on occasion, the person has been known to turn against the United States after seeing the devastation that was done to an area or group of people from the country that they moved from. This can be seen in some occurrences, especially with the Middle East and the issues that have happened over there.
Overall, the biggest thing is to find the most financially and ethically efficient plan when it comes to handling the issue of immigration. The best plan for that is to have the individual serve in the military. Even if there is a problem with the person having a disability, there are other ways for them to be able to contribute through programs like the USO or other military support groups. By finding a way for them to contribute to the United States military, it proves their loyalty to the United States, and it also helps in combating an issue that the US military has been facing for a long time. It would also benefit the immigrant, because they would be able to get their citizenship and the benefits afforded to the military members. This plan would leave an opportunity to be able to find an alternative to the citizenship test that many people already disagree with.
References
"Immigrants in the Military." 2010. We are One America. Fact Sheet. 29 November 2013. <http://www.weareoneamerica.org/sites/default/files/OneAmercaFactSheet_Immigrants_in_the_Military.pdf>.
"Immigration Enforcement Actions: 2010." Annual Report. 2011. <http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/statistics/publications/enforcement-ar-2010.pdf>.
Mamiverse Team. 25 Quotes on Immigration: Now & Then. 28 January 2013. 30 November 2013. <http://www.mamiverse.com/25-quotes-immigration-34011/>.
Patterson, Crystal. New Report Details the Vital Role of Immigrants in Our Nation’s Military. 8 November 2013. <http://www.americanprogress.org/press/release/2013/11/08/79240/release-new-report-details-the-vital-role-of-immigrants-in-our-nations-military/>.
Scoring Guidelines for the U.S. Naturalization Test. n.d. <http://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/Office%20of%20Citizenship/Citizenship%20Resource%20Center%20Site/Publications/PDFs/Test_Scoring_Guidelines.pdf>.
