The Politics of Immigration

Why do legislators in Congress do what they do when it comes to voting on immigration policy? The Politics of Comprehensive Immigration Reform in the United States argues that contemporary immigration politics is defined by three core features: the entrenchment of partisan divides over the issue of immigration, demographic changes that are reshaping the electorate, and how these changes are creating new opportunities to define what it means to be an American in a period of unprecedented national origins, racial and ethnic, and cultural diversity. It analyzes more than 30,000 votes in the House and in the Senate since H.R. 4437, which was a restrictive immigration bill that, after passing in the House in late 2005, led to nationwide marches in 2006 that crystallized the contemporary immigrant-rights movement. The book provides readers with a primer on United States immigration policy, offering detailed discussions on legal admissions policies, border security polices, interior immigration enforcement policies, and policies related to the legal status of undocumented immigrants. After laying out the current policy landscape, legislative proposals to reform the United States immigration system are also discussed. The book also uses the analysis of voting on immigration policy to forecast the future of comprehensive immigration reform in the United States.