Dear President of the United States:

There are currently 11.2 million illegal immigrants living in the United States of America, that is approximately 4% of our population (CBS News). A President is elected to aid our country and take on prominent issues. You were elected to help the people, and one way that can be done is by reforming our immigration policies.

These undocumented people, living all around the country, are a huge help to businesses. Illegal immigrants are willing to work “under the table” and perform cheap labor that educated Americans are not willing to take on. Without these workers, the United States agricultural industry would collapse. Prices in grocery stores would sky rocket, and there would be a massive decline in food production. In 2009 the National Milk Producers Federation explained, “Retail milk prices would increase by 61% if its immigrant labor force were to be eliminated” (The Hill).

While our food industry would become a disaster, we cannot let these people remain in our country; we cannot just grant 11 million people amnesty. As President, you need to create a program that will gradually deport these aliens back to their countries of origin. Deporting every illegal immigrant is not the final solution though. To ensure that these people do not continue entering illegally, our country needs to secure borders and punish employers that give aliens work. If workers are able to hire these people for cheap costs, they will continue to do so and they will hide these people. As a result, employers need to be fined for giving illegal immigrants work.

These immigrants cannot remain in the United States for a few, extreme reasons. This country has laws, and when laws are broken there are consequences. It is called illegal immigration because it is against the law. As the President, you should not be granting citizenship to undocumented people that have entered the country in an improper fashion.

Going along with that, illegal immigrants have not gone through medical or background checks. While it is a minority, aliens in our country can be potentially dangerous terrorists that have gone under the radar. In an article by CNN, writer Catherine E. Shoichet exclaimed, “177,960, that is the number of undocumented immigrants deported last year who were convicted criminals, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement” (CNN). Only a minor percentage of illegal immigrants are deported each year, leaving millions of possible threats remaining in the country. Deporting these people will help ensure safety to the American people.

One of the final issues with undocumented people is the tax money they use to pay for health insurance. The U.S. Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act of 1986 made it illegal for most hospitals to refuse anyone treatment for an emergency medical condition because of citizenship, legal status, or ability to pay (CBS News). Undocumented citizens are unable to register for health care, so if they are injured and require medical attention they are most likely not able to pay for the services. This is when U.S. taxes are used to pay for illegal immigrants.

Another circumstance where Americans’ taxes are used to pay for illegal immigrants is in the public school system. Chip Reid of CBS News wrote, “Spending for public education of illegal immigrant children in K-12 public education in Minnesota for 2003-2004 was a total of $78.76 million to $118.14 million. Alabama alone spends a quarter of a billion dollars a year on education and social services for illegal immigrants and their children” (CBS News).

Undocumented citizens in our country are a catastrophe. They have broken the laws set by our government, they pose a threat to Americans’ safety, and they continue to use tax money to educate themselves and pay for health care. Our foreign policies are broken, and as the United States newly elected President, it is your duty to fix them and solve our country’s crisis.

Sincerely,

Bryce H