Letter: We need bipartisan immigration reform

The Biden Administration has already raised the annual maximum number of those seeking asylum at 125,000.

Seeking a job or better life for you or your children are not appropriate grounds for seeking asylum.

Those seeking asylum must have been persecuted in their home country in the past or have a well-founded fear that they will be persecuted again if they return.

That persecution must be based on race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion.

The bi-partisan Immigration Bill should include:

1. Sufficient funds for border communities to handle the influx of immigrants.

2. At least 50 “Asylum Courts” to triage and immediately determine if there is a viable asylum claim, before immigrants are paroled and allowed to enter the country.

3. Close the U.S. southern border for three months until “Asylum Courts” are set up.

4. A path for citizenship for Dreamers.

5. A path for citizenship for immigrants who have been gainfully employed without criminal convictions in the U.S. for at least 10 years, but otherwise lack legal immigration status.

6. A program for seasonal farmworkers so they can attain a path for citizenship after 15 seasons.

7. Clear standards for Temporary-Protected Status holders.

There have been no immigration reforms since 1987 when President Reagan proposed amnesty and a path for citizenship for thousands of immigrants.

The responsibility for passing immigration reform rests with Congress.

Efforts to impeach the Director of Homeland Security is political grandstanding that won’t solve the immigration crisis.

It is wrong to blame President Biden for the immigration crisis when Congress refuses to take appropriate action.

Rob Chandler, Sunnyside