Opinion

Border-jumping ‘Dreamers’

The Issue: Whether concerns about drug-smuggling should affect Congress’ immigration reforms.

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Painting all the people eligible for “Dreamers” amnesty as valedictorians is as foolish as calling them all criminals (“Rebuke to Steve King,” Linda Chavez, PostOpinion, July 27).

But logic tells us that fewer of them are making commencement speeches than working a criminal angle.

Allowing children brought here by border-busting parents to gain legal status must be done on an individual basis. The “Dreamer” must be a boon, not a bust.

Why even have comprehensive immigration reform? Migration to this country from Europe and the Middle East is mostly orderly and legal.

The mayhem stems from our non-existent southern border. If, for the past half-century, we’d had an enforceable border with Mexico, we would not be harboring millions of undocumented border crashers, using taxpayer-funded programs not originally intended for them.

Martin Gruenbaum

The Bronx

Drug mules have been a part of the smuggling operation for quite some time, and they mostly hail from south of the border.

The immigration debates of a hundred years ago that Chavez mentions are off topic in relation to Rep. King’s remarks. King does not want to segregate; he wants our lawmakers to address real illegal immigration and smuggling problems in our country.

Chavez should explain why those who broke the law by sneaking across the border should be given amnesty at all.

Elio Valenti

Brooklyn