New York Times
(Editorial)
February 12, 2016
Mrs. Clinton’s Mixed Immigration Message
In
Thursday night’s Democratic debate, Hillary Clinton defended her past
statements that Central American migrant children needed to be sent home
from the border to “send
a message” to other families: Don’t come.
Wrong answer — which Bernie Sanders immediately pointed out.
“Who
are you sending a message to?” he said, reminding her that mothers and
children were fleeing Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala to avoid being
murdered. “I don’t
think we use them to send a message. I think we welcome them into this
country and do the best we can to help them get their lives together.”
The
sharp exchange on refugees was a welcome break from the Democrats’
one-note squabbling over who is a progressive and who hates the banks
more. The border is a subject
of manic intensity on the Republican side, but Mr. Sanders and Mrs.
Clinton have not been talking about it much. They generally agree that
President Obama’s enforcement policies have been too harsh, and they
promise to do more than he did to help immigrants
live and work without fear of deportation. On the trail, though, they
have not always led with this information.
Over
the years, Mrs. Clinton has shown an unfortunate tendency to oscillate
between harshness and compassion on immigration questions. She seems to
reach instinctively
for the tougher-sounding policy before coming around, eventually, to
positions that more closely reflect American ideals of welcome — ideals
that Mr. Sanders voiced fluently on Thursday night.
Running
for president in 2008, Mrs. Clinton gave a muddled answer to a debate
question about driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants. She later
clarified — she would
oppose such driver’s licenses as president — and then, more recently,
decided that she supports them after all.
It
was after the number of Central American migrant children at the border
spiked in 2014 that she said they should be sent back to send a
message. “Just because your
child gets across the border, that doesn’t mean the child gets to
stay,” she said. Now she says children should have access to lawyers and
not be held in family prisons, but she was tripped up again by her
“send a message” line.
Mrs.
Clinton now has an opportunity to clarify her message: Senator Harry
Reid, Democrat of Nevada, introduced a bill on Thursday that would help
to guarantee due process
for border refugees. It would require the attorney general to appoint
lawyers for unaccompanied children and others who are vulnerable, like
victims of abuse or torture and those with disabilities. The Department
of Homeland Security would have to make sure
that all migrants had access to counsel, knew their rights and
obligations, and understood what was happening to them. The bill seeks
to correct the appalling injustice of refugee children facing court
proceedings alone and being deported back to grave danger
at home.
The
border influx was a humanitarian emergency before it became a concocted
homeland-security crisis and political pickle. It will take courage,
and require a lot of money,
for the country to stand up for the rights of the uninvited and
desperate. Volunteer lawyers and advocacy organizations have struggled
mightily to provide representation for migrants who face the real threat
of death if their asylum claims fail.
Mrs.
Clinton tweeted in favor of the Reid bill on Thursday night. If she
means what she says about herself — that she is all about tackling
difficult problems and helping
those most in need — she will go all in to support Mr. Reid’s effort,
and let the world know it.
For more information, go to: www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com
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