licy set a flexible annual limit on immigration at a rate of 700,000 immigrants per year until 1994 when the number dropped to 675,000. This number of course does not include refugees and those seeking asylum ("Immigration . . . "). If these numbers seem, staggering one must take into account the estimated "300,000 to 400,000 illegal immigrants" added to the nations population each year (Suro 8). In the mid-90's there was a shift in America's immigration policy to "close the doors and end the current era of immigration" (Suro 8). In President Clinton's 1995 State of the Union Message he said: "It is wrong and ultimately self-defeating for a nation of immigrants to permit the kind of abuse of our immigration laws we have seen in recent years, and we must do more to stop it." ("Immigration . . . "). This attitude led to the Immigration Enforcement Improvements Act of 1995, which was meant to secure our borders, make deportation of illegal easier, and discourage the employment of illegal aliens ("Immigration . . . "). In essence this was a proposal to enforce the laws already in place. This was a strong attempt by the government to limit illegal immigration while facilitating legal immigration. Now, due to the lack of credible data, it is unclear if this legislation worked. What is clear is the continuing struggle to find a balance in the immigration system. In the past, immigration was somewhat balanced; a good economy meant more immigrants and a slower economy saw a decrease in immigration (Amselle 60). However, there are those who now feel the United States has absorbed all the people it can (Amselle 60). On the other hand, there are those like Joel Kotkin of the Progressive Policy Institute who feel that the large numbers of immigrants are "working age adults," that America needs to "offset the growing number of pensioners" (Amselle 60). Even if the immigrant population can offset the number of pensioners, the number of re...
