Dear Future President,

Illegal immigration is happening each and every day. Most of this illegal immigration is happening through our southern borders, we must do something to stop it. "Nearly half of the 12 million-plus illegal aliens in America arrived legally with temporary, non-immigrant visas. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) estimates that a 'substantial' percentage of America’s illegal population is made up of visa overstays — their estimates range from 27 to 57 percent. . ." (Seminara, 1) “The unauthorized resident immigrant population is defined as all foreign-born non-citizens who are not legal residents.” (US Department of Homeland Security, 1) Illegal immigration affects Parents, young people living on their own, and anyone else who pays taxes. I believe that illegal immigration should be a top priority because these illegal immigrants are costing the United state's roughly 100 Billion a year. Most of this money comes from the taxpayers. As stated on ProCon.org: "Illegal immigration costs U.S. taxpayers about $113 billion a year at the federal, state and local level… The annual outlay that illegal aliens cost U.S. taxpayers is an average amount per native-headed household of $1,117... Education for the children of illegal aliens constitutes the single largest cost to taxpayers, at an annual price tag of nearly $52 billion…” This is way too much money for people to be spending for people who don't actually live in the United State's. This heavy price tag affects many families and people.

I feel that illegal immigration should be stopped. These illegal immigrants are costing the United state's roughly 100 Billion a year. Most of this money comes from the taxpayers. As stated on ProCon.org:

"Illegal immigration costs U.S. taxpayers about $113 billion a year at the federal, state and local level… The annual outlay that illegal aliens cost U.S. taxpayers is an average amount per native-headed household of $1,117... Education for the children of illegal aliens constitutes the single largest cost to taxpayers, at an annual price tag of nearly $52 billion…”(Federation for American Immigration Reform, 2)

This is way too much money for people to be spending for people who don't actually live in the United State's. This heavy price tag affects many families and people. Also,Illegal immigrants cause job loss for working class Americans. As found on ProCon.org, "There are an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the country and we also admit over a million permanent legal immigrants each year, leading to enormous implications for the U.S. labor market. Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that there are some 58 million working-age (16 to 65) native-born Americans not working — unemployed or out of the labor market entirely. This is roughly 16 million more than in 2000. Equally troubling, wages have stagnated or declined for most American workers. This is especially true for the least educated, who are most likely to compete with immigrants (legal and illegal).” (Camarota, 1)This matters because this can prevent legal Americans from being able to get a job because an illegal immigrant has taken this job. As you can see, Illegal immigration can lead to some pretty big problems and needs to be stopped.

The other side to this argument supports illegal immigration and say it supports and helps the economy. "[T]here is little doubt that unauthorized, that is, illegal, immigration has made a significant contribution to the growth of our economy. Between 2000 and 2007, for example, it accounted for more than a sixth of the increase in our total civilian labor force. The illegal part of the civilian labor force diminished last year as the economy slowed, though illegals still comprised an estimated 5% of our total civilian labor force. Unauthorized immigrants serve as a flexible component of our workforce, often a safety valve when demand is pressing and among the first to be discharged when the economy falters. (Greenspan, 3) Even though illegal immigration can be bad, it can still help the economy. It can help by adding people to the workforce, therefore making more money for their company. Illegal immigration can actually help the United States, but still might not be the best idea.

A solution to this problem is to make an immigration reform and close our southern border for the mean time. This issue connects to Global Goal 8, good jobs and economic growth. This would help support this goal because it could save us over 100 Billion dollars every year and boost our economy. This will also open up more jobs for American workers to take. This should be a priority because it is a big problem right now in our country especially on our southern border.

Sincerely,

Jack R

This supports my point because illegal immigration is ILLEGAL