Dear John,
The nation's immigration system is in desperate need of an overhaul -- and has been for many years. What has been missing is an alternate vision for a path forward that treats immigration as a comparative advantage and strategic resource, while also accounting for heightened security and rule-of-law imperatives, that can together further U.S. interests, values, and democratic principles as a society.
I am pleased to announce that the Migration Policy Institute (MPI) is launching a new initiative, Rethinking U.S. Immigration Policy, that seeks to fill this gap. In the months ahead, my colleagues and I will generate a big-picture, evidence-driven vision of the role immigration can and should play in the country's future.
Our starting point is to recognize that there are new realities facing the United States that should drive immigration policymaking in the coming period, not a return to the tired debates of the past 20 years that have foundered again and again amid rising partisanship and polarization. Historically, immigration policymaking and legislation have only succeeded through across-the-aisle cooperation and a search for common ground. Our initiative is committed to re-energizing such bipartisanship and recapturing the center in formulating and advancing fresh, feasible solutions.
We will be launching our initiative with a discussion at MPI's offices on Monday, August 12 ([link removed]). I can think of no better strategic thinkers and leaders with whom to kick this off than former Bush administration Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez and former Obama administration Domestic Policy Council Director Cecilia Muñoz.
My colleagues and I hope you will join us for this important conversation, and we hope you'll keep an eye out for the think pieces, reports, and other analyses we will be releasing through the Rethinking Initiative.
With best regards,
Doris Meissner
Senior Fellow and Director, U.S. Immigration Policy Program,
Migration Policy Institute
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MPI Event Invitation
Rethinking U.S. Immigration Policy: Building a Responsive, Effective Immigration System
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Date & Time: MONDAY, AUGUST 12, 2019, 11:00 A.M. TO 12:30 P.M. ET
SPEAKERS
*Carlos Gutierrez, former U.S. Secretary of Commerce; Chair, Albright Stonebridge Group
*Cecilia Muñoz, former Director of White House Domestic Policy Council; Vice President, Public Interest Technology and Local Initiatives, New America
*Doris Meissner, Senior Fellow and Director, U.S. Policy Program, Migration Policy Institute (MPI)
*Julia Gelatt, Senior Policy Analyst, MPI
WELCOME: Andrew Selee, President, MPI
LOCATION: Migration Policy Institute First Floor Conference Room, 1400 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036
REGISTER NOW TO ATTEND IN PERSON [ [link removed] ]
The U.S. immigration system is widely acknowledged as being broken. Despite multiple attempts, solutions have proven elusive for administrations and Congress for more than two decades.
The evidence of dysfunction is in every direction: Vastly oversubscribed categories for employment visas, deep disagreement between Washington and many state and local governments about immigration enforcement and policy priorities, political paralysis over what to do about a long-settled unauthorized population, years-long caseloads tied up in the immigration court system, sharp pullbacks in refugee admissions and other humanitarian programs, and, most recently, a protracted migration crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border.
As the United States is mired in inaction, its legal immigration system resting on laws dating back to 1965 and 1990, other major immigrant-destination countries have created flexible, modernized immigration systems. What changes are needed to overcome the failings of the current system and meet U.S. economic and security interests in the decades ahead? What values and principles should guide future immigration policymaking?
To answer these and similar questions, the Migration Policy Institute is launching a major new initiative--Rethinking U.S. Immigration Policy--that aims to generate a big-picture, evidence-driven vision of the role immigration can and should play in America's future. This multi-year initiative will provide research, analysis, and policy ideas and proposals--both administrative and legislative--that reflect new realities and needs if immigration is to continue to be a comparative advantage for the United States as a society. Key topics will include employment based-immigration, humanitarian programs, and immigration enforcement.
Historically, immigration policymaking and legislation have only succeeded through across-the-aisle cooperation and consensus-building. This initiative is animated by a commitment to re-energizing such bipartisanship in shaping and advancing feasible solutions.
Please join us as we launch this initiative with a discussion among seasoned players from both political parties. This event will not be livestreamed.
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For more information
[email protected] | 202-266-1929
www.migrationpolicy.org
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Migration Policy Institute
1400 16th St NW, # 300
Washington, DC 20036
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