9
Democrat and Republican Immigration Policies: A Stark Divide By Martha Roussopoulos Edited by Stella Forbes Despite an American being native-born, one in eight of these Americans will have at least one immigrant parent. 41 Additionally, with one in seven residents of the United States of America being an immigrant, American voters should pay close attention to the electoral candidate's plans for immigration. 42 Joe Biden postulates, if the Democrats win the 2020 elections, new immigration policies will be implemented to welcome immigrants to the United States while modernizing and improving the current American immigration system. Whereas, Donald Trump asserts that he will uphold the promises he has kept throughout his presidency, which includes making the removal of illegal immigrants from the United States a priority. In the instance that Joe Biden wins the 2020 US elections, he has outlined six main goals he wishes to accomplish for immigration in the United States. The Biden plan for immigration includes: modernizing the American immigration system, welcoming in immigrants, establishing a commitment to asylum-seekers and refugees, determining what causes illegal migration, improving border screening, and undoing Trump’s damage. 43 The Democrats will aim to modernize the American immigration system by providing a plan for the 11 million undocumented immigrants to obtain citizenship. 44 In 2015, 23.6 billion USD was collected from 4.4 million undocumented workers without Social Security numbers. 45 Joe Biden’s proposed plan acknowledges that undocumented immigrants do pay their taxes, however many of them are paying for taxes they cannot benefit from due to the fact that they are not American citizens. 46 Therefore, providing these undocumented immigrants with a clear road map to gain American citizenship it will contribute as well as strengthen the American economy, thus creating a win-win situation for not only immigrants who are wishing to move to America fairly, but as well to help preserve and provide for the economy. 47
41
American Immigration Council. “Immigrants in the United States.” American Immigration Council,
42
Ibid.,
“The Biden Plan for Securing Our Values as a Nation of Immigrants.” Joe Biden for President: Official Campaign Website, 2020. 43
44
Ibid.,
45
Ibid.,
Campbell, Alexia Fernández. “Trump Says Undocumented Immigrants Are an Economic Burden. They Pay Billions in Taxes.” Vox. Vox, April 13, 2018. 46
47
Ibid.,
