California Immigration Attorney Blog

The Los Angeles Times is calling for action in the wake of President Obama's speech last week on the need for immigration reform.

While our Riverside immigration attorneys and Anaheim immigration lawyers were pleased to see the administration calling for the reform promised with the election of the President nearly two years ago, we share the frustration of California immigrant rights advocates who are tired of long delays and few specifics.

Obama was right in calling for our nation to reaffirm its identity as a nation of immigrants. As we reported on our California Immigration Attorney Blog, the Fourth of July celebration, which included citizenship ceremonies at Ellis Island, is an annual reminder that America was built by immigrants seeking a better life for themselves and their families.

The Times outlines several key challenges to immigration reform:

-Boarder Security: Those calling for a secure border are ignoring the fact that the U.S. Mexican border is 1,930 miles of rugged terrain.

-Diplomatic Relations: Comprehensive reform can only come through addressing many of the internal and external pressures that encourage illegal immigration.

-Bureaucracy: Eliminating red tape and other challenges in the current system is critical to eliminating the backlog that leaves eligible applicants waiting for years to be reunited with family members.

-Employment: Supplying work visas more readily will ease the problem of illegal labor performed by eligible immigrants, as will requiring employers to verify the legal status of workers.

-Amnesty: While it has become a hot-button issue, bringing the nation's 11 million illegal immigrants out of the shadows is critical in drafting any true measure of reform.

Politics: As long as the two sides in Congress insist on playing politics instead of working on behalf of the American people, little action will occur.