Border first: Immigration question should be about a solution

We have been so busy talking about budgets at home that we have not had the time to comment on another important issue being decided right now in Washington, D.C.

Immigration -- and what to do about it.

There are many facets to the issue, of course, but we want to focus on one critical step -- borders.

While it is all well and good to talk about paths to citizenship and what to do about illegal immigrants who are already in the country, the more central question is how to make sure we are not talking about this issue again in another four years.

And the solution to that is to make sure that the sieves we call borders are secured once and for all.

That requires more than speeches about rights and worries about Hispanic voting blocs. It also is not masked by heartfelt pleas from those who are in the country illegally.

It is a critical reality that must be addressed before any real olive branches are extended to illegal immigrants.

Why? Simple. If you don't stop the flow before you make the path to citizenship available without penalty, you will set the stage for large amounts of illegal border crossings and no way to fund it, to control it or to prevent it.

So those who are asking for a definitive and aggressive plan to control this nation's borders are dead on.

And they are right to make it Step 1.

We have tried amnesty in the past and it did not stop the problem because we did not include a serious and detailed border control plan.

Now is the time to make sure this problem is addressed, before the path is made clear for illegal immigrants to become U.S. citizens.

It is the logical next step and it is a critical one.

Published in Editorials on June 26, 2013 11:09 AM