As a Libertarian I believe very strongly in individual liberty and the free market. As such, I am very pro-immigration. I believe that if you want to come here and work you should be free to do so. There isn't a lot of internal debate for me, but this is still a controversial topic, so I am going to weigh in on a few points where the Democrats and Republicans should be if they believed what they said.
Immigrants Steal Jobs from Americans.
Republican- You believe in the Free Market and Competition only if doesn't apply to you?! Get real. If you are honest when you argue for De-Regulation of business, then you don't want the Government to interfere in negotiating contracts or hiring. You should recognize that competition benefits everyone, and even well-intentioned government interference (Like Immigration laws) hurt the economy.
Democrats- You should be okay with the Government trying to protect other peoples jobs, but the laws hurt those of Hispanic descent more than any other demographic. You should be very bothered by this.
Immigrants Receive Welfare/Money/Public Support -
Republicans- If your anger is with the welfare system in general then this could almost be a valid complaint. The problem is that "Welfare" accounts for less than 1% of State and Federal budgets. If you think that 1% of your taxes is too much to spend on welfare, then you should argue against WELFARE. It shouldn't influence your immigration decisions.
Democrats- Should be in favor of Welfare. If you aren't, then you probably should change your vote.
Both- There is a persistent myth that illegal immigrants don't pay taxes. Immigrants pay sales tax, cell phone tax, car registration taxes, etc. The only taxes that immigrants don't generally pay is Federal Income Tax. This is probably a net loss for them. If there pay is "on the books" then due to their low income, they are probably losing refunds.
Immigrants cause crime-
Both- First of all, most people argue that, BY DEFINITION, entering the country illegally is a crime, so illegal immigrants are criminals. This is true, it is also true that the Founding Fathers were BY DEFINITION criminals. They all committed treason.
Both Part 2- If your argument is that illegal immigrants cause other crimes, then the numbers don't back you up. Think about it logically, if you are at risk of being deported for any legal offense then you may commit, then you are strongly incentivized not to commit crimes. Once people are here legally their population is no more or less likely to commit crimes than any other group (whites, blacks etc) of the same income level. Crime is much more related to income level than legal status.
Their are other arguments and rebuttals out there, but I don't want to get into every single one.
The main concern is that there is some very strong opposition to immigration. The opposition is armed with nothing but myths. The economic gains seem to clearly lie with allowing free immigration (especially if you believe in free markets), but the major concern for people in the US is supposed to be costs or economic toll.
Immigrants have always been reviled in this country. If it would be funnier if it wasn't tragic. No sooner does one group of people fight to gain acceptance here, only to immediately turn around and persecute the newest group.
This brings me to saddest thought. I worry that this fear of immigration is based on racism. I do not want that to be the case. I honestly want to believe that the other side of the argument has legitimate non-racist reasons for their beliefs. It is becoming harder to do so every day.
