Busloads of unaccompanied migrant children arriving at processing centers across the country have been met with open arms in some communities and blocked by protesters in others, a reflection of the still bitter debate over our nation's immigration policies.
We think most Americans would agree on this much: The children arriving from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador can't be allowed to languish in a costly system that will eventually expel most of them.
What's needed is a fast and thorough process to determine which of the children qualify for asylum in the U.S., and which can be safely returned home. A speedy resolution of their cases is in the best interests of the children, whether they stay or go. It also would send a message to parents weighing whether to send their children on a treacherous journey to our southern border: Don't.
Everyone in Washington seems to understand that much. Everyone in Washington seems to agree this is a genuine crisis. Yet everyone in Washington seems resigned to the idea that they won't agree on a resolution before Congress starts a five-week recess beginning Aug. 1.
Republicans in Congress say President Barack Obama's policies signaled that the door was open, and that the president didn't react quickly to close it when the crowds of children started showing up. They've balked at his request for $3.7 billion to deal with the crisis.
Republicans also want changes in a 2008 law meant to protect immigrant kids from trafficking. That law guarantees a day in court for unaccompanied minors from countries that don't share a border with the U.S. It can take five years or more for a case to work its way through the system.
The White House concedes that most of the children will not be eligible to stay. It makes sense, then, to adjust the law to weed out the cases that will ultimately fail and send the children home quickly and safely.
Obama hasn't proposed specific changes to the law but has said he's open to the idea. That doesn't sit well with some members of his own party.
Democrats in the Senate, including Majority Leader Harry Reid, believe Obama has the discretion to accelerate the process through executive means under "exceptional circumstances," and they want him to do it--to spare them from taking a politically unpopular vote. Their emerging plan calls for $2.7 billion in emergency funding but includes no amendments to the 2008 law.
Senate Republicans, led by Arizona Sens. John McCain and Jeff Flake, are pushing for changes that would speed repatriations, but they'd also increase the number of humanitarian visas available to Central American migrants.
Editorial on 07/29/2014