The United States gave me an opportunity to start a business and become a job producer for other Americans. In fact, the U.S. economy relies on legal, high-skilled immigrants, who have started over half of Silicon Valley’s tech companies and are responsible for three-quarters of patents earned at our universities. Yet our immigration system makes it very difficult for these people to come and stay here legally, while making it very easy for low-skilled immigrants to come here undocumented. Why do we insist on annual caps on permits for legal, skilled immigrants like doctors and engineers but refuse to enhance border security to stem the tide of undocumented persons? Especially after 9/11, when it's imperative to know who is crossing our borders? The culprit is Washington’s very poor leadership on this issue. Proponents of amnesty for all undocumented immigrants have refused to accept increased border security, and supporters of border security haven’t done enough to help regularize the situation of those already here. I believe that immigration reform must come in three steps. First and most important is increased border security: there is a limit to the ability of the United States to absorb millions of undocumented persons whose substandard wages hurt low-income Americans. Second, we must reward law-abiding, high-skilled immigrants with a more efficient system that welcomes their contributions. Third, on the condition that the first has been fulfilled, we should provide those already here with a path to citizenship. An entire class of people working unofficial jobs to avoid being discovered is a human and economic problem that should not continue.
What has Brad Sherman done? In 17 years, Brad Sherman has never authored a single bill related to immigration. The issue is not mentioned on his website. When asked to explain his immigration policies at a Town Hall meeting in 2013, he was unable.
