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An immigration think tank has introduced a controversial strategy aimed at assisting President Donald Trump’s deportation initiatives. This plan seeks to complement traditional enforcement efforts by leveraging informants to reduce job opportunities for undocumented immigrants.
The Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) has published a report outlining a method to encourage what they term “self-deportations” among illegal immigrants. The report proposes a slight modification to the tax code that would penalize employers who hire undocumented workers. This change would enable private citizens to sue businesses, compelling them to adhere to the E-Verify system and effectively limiting job prospects for migrants.
Ajay Gupta, the report’s author, acknowledges the current administration’s enforcement actions but argues it will struggle to make significant progress through conventional deportation practices. Instead, the CIS suggests a push for voluntary departures among large numbers of undocumented migrants.
“Despite its ‘shock and awe,’ a forcible deportation campaign is unlikely to significantly impact the vast population of illegal immigrants,” the report states. “For effective enforcement, laws prohibiting the hiring of undocumented workers must be rigorously upheld.”
The report references historical examples, including Britain’s 19th-century campaign to eliminate child labor, as a successful model for compliance. It underscores the need for proactive enforcement of labor laws and suggests that a similar approach could be utilized in the U.S.
“The proposal would impose a punitive tax on anyone who hires unauthorized workers and empower private citizens to initiate lawsuits to recover this tax,” the document outlines. “The presence of informants, as opposed to the unlikely prospect of government intervention, may instill fear in employers, prompting them to adopt E-Verify, a free online tool designed to verify a prospective hire’s eligibility to work.”
The anticipated outcome of this strategy is that it would greatly diminish employment opportunities for undocumented immigrants, potentially resulting in a significant number of them deciding to return to their home countries.
This is not the first instance of this idea being proposed in the United States. Former Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah) previously advocated for self-deportation during his 2012 presidential campaign.
During a Republican primary debate in 2012, Romney stated, “The solution is self-deportation, where individuals determine they would be better off going home because they cannot secure employment here due to a lack of legal work authorization.”
Romney’s concept drew substantial criticism at the time, with Trump labeling it “maniacal” and “crazy,” according to a report published by NewsMax.
However, some high-profile figures supported Romney’s stance, including Florida Senator Marco Rubio, currently serving as Secretary of State under Trump.
Rubio expressed confusion over the notion of self-deportation as a sound immigration policy, commenting, “I never understood self-deportation as a policy. It seems more an observation about what people may do when immigration laws are enforced.”
According to the CIS report, a renewed approach towards self-deportation could be facilitated by amendments to current tax laws via budget reconciliation. This method would require only a simple majority in the Senate, potentially circumventing Democratic opposition.
“Republicans currently hold both legislative and executive power to successfully implement the recommended strategy. This effort could necessitate little more than the addition of around 650 words to a budget reconciliation bill. Consequently, it would compel employers nationwide to comply with E-Verify,” the report concludes.
In closing, the CIS warns that if GOP lawmakers choose not to pursue this relatively straightforward legislative action, their constituents could justifiably perceive that the priority lies more with avoiding additional burdens on employers rather than focusing on removing undocumented immigrants from the country.
