Ever since GOP presidential frontrunner Mitt Romney voiced support for the concept of attrition through enforcement as the most effective means of dealing with mass illegal immigration, the American public has heard its share of snickers, chuckles, guffaws, giggles and assorted other expressions of derision. Gov. Romney’s opponents, the media, pundits, and Comedy Central anchors have joined in the laugh-fest.
But guess who isn’t joining in the mirth? The professional advocates for illegal immigration find nothing humorous about the concept of attrition through enforcement. Attrition through enforcement, an idea that FAIR and other immigration reform organizations have been espousing for years, posits that if you remove the incentives that draw illegal aliens to this country and make it clear that our immigration laws will be enforced, many will respond rationally and leave on their own.
The illegal alien advocates who participated in a telephonic news conference on February 6 – including the Immigration Policy Center, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Southern Poverty Law Center, among others – see attrition through enforcement as a serious threat to their dream of mass amnesty and even more massive immigration. They have very good reason to be concerned. As FAIR noted last month, attrition through enforcement works – and for the illegal alien advocates that’s no joking matter.