TOM PATTERSON: The Best Way To Get Illegal Immigrants To Return Home

by Dr. Thomas Patterson | May 9, 2025 | Opinion

By Dr. Thomas Patterson |

There has likely never been a more tendentious transfer of power in presidential history than the Biden-Harris team’s final act. They salted the ground by allocating billions of unspent COVID funds to George Soros and other radical left-wing groups.

Out of spite, they sold the border wall at giveaway prices. They tied down policy preventing offshore oil drilling, granted Social Security benefits to previously ineligible government employees, defied the Supreme Court to forgive student loans, and were uncooperative in relinquishing the VP residence.

Yet by far the most consequential crisis they unleashed is the massive number of illegal aliens now embedded within our borders. Many Americans were astonished to see our leadership not only ignore American immigration law but actively work for its violation.

Now we know for certain their claims that they needed more funding and legislation were made-up excuses. Their successors have reduced daily crossings to near-zero without the benefit of either.

Their attempted deceptions fooled some but not all. As public outcry grew, they doggedly persisted, willing to take the heat in order to transform America’s future electorate.

Worse, they succeeded. No reliable statistics are available for the getaways, unlawful crossings or total new “guests,” but most estimates are in the range of 20 million illegally within our borders.

Many sanctimonious Americans claim these lawbreakers should be allowed to stay for humanitarian reasons since they’re just “seeking a better life” or “fleeing persecution” in the case of the mostly bogus asylum seekers. But when a busload of “victims” was delivered to the left-wing enclave of Martha’s Vineyard, they were speedily transported elsewhere within a day.

That’s understandable, hypocrisy aside. These are not your grandfather’s immigrants, who wanted to be contributing Americans and often endured generations of hardship to assimilate, learn the language, and become self-supporting.

Today’s illegal immigrants are rewarded for wading the Rio Grande by becoming entitled wards of the state. They are fed, sheltered, and transported around the country. They are housed, sometimes in luxury hotels, and introduced by helpful NGOs to benefits like health care, education, and permanent food programs.

No serious consideration was given to the prospect that immigrants or their proxies would bear financial responsibility for all these goods and services. Thus, jurisdictions like New York City are feeling the pinch of what amounts to a sudden, dramatic expansion in their welfare roles, forcing out existing programs.

Trump made the resolution of this threat a major feature of his election campaign by vowing to close our borders and deport millions of illegal immigrants. To his credit, he has made a sincere effort, reducing breaches of the border from 130,000 monthly last April to a mere trickle today.

But reversing the inflow has proved more problematic. As of recently, relying almost solely on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to remove illegals has resulted in a total of 65,000 deportations. Those with criminal records have commendably been prioritized, but at the rate so far achieved, we would deport only 1 million, or about 5%, of those who are eligible, in four years.

Trump often prefers confrontation to resolve conflicts, but there’s a better way, using incentives and voluntary self-removal. Immigrants are attracted to America primarily by work and welfare. If those magnets could be eliminated, immigrants would eventually self-deport.

The welfare piece is relatively simple logistically. There is no coherent reason to grant benefits to those who intentionally defy our laws and take advantage of our generosity.

Government welfare benefits to illegals should be phased out immediately. Moreover, their home countries would benefit from having their working age citizens return.

Jobs are more complicated. E-Verify is the federal system for assuring that illegal immigrants don’t take American jobs, but it has not worked well, partly due to lack of cooperation from employers who frankly prefer foreign nationals who are compliant and work for less.

To prevent a future glut of unskilled, unneeded workers, President Trump must work with Congress to make E-Verify the enforceable law of the land. Like the border itself, it is simply a matter of having the will to make it happen. Lettuce may cost a bit more, but the vegetables will still get picked.

Dr. Thomas Patterson, former Chairman of the Goldwater Institute, is a retired emergency physician. He served as an Arizona State senator for 10 years in the 1990s, and as Majority Leader from 93-96. He is the author of Arizona’s original charter schools bill.