Trump's voters won him the election, and they want an end to amnesty for immigrants in the U.S. illegally

Opinion: Trump’s voters won him the election, and they want an end to amnesty for immigrants in the U.S. illegally

A woman holds a sign in support of the Obama-era program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, during a rally on Aug. 15 at the White House.

Sept. 1, 2017 5 AM PT

To the editor: The Times Editorial Board asks about immigrants brought illegally to the United States as children, “By what calculation is it in the best interest of the country to eliminate their deferments and make them eligible for deportation?” (“Ending DACA would upend the dreams of a generation of immigrants without fixing a thing,” editorial, Aug. 29)

First of all, 30 of the 50 states voted for President Trump and his immigration policies in the 2016 election. It’s very likely that many of those voters were motivated to show up at the polls to counter the “diversity” dogma that regards them as bigots.

The only “dysfunctional” part of the U.S. immigration system, dating back to the Reagan era, has been lax enforcement of existing laws. Since more than 1 million immigrants living in the country illegally received amnesty back in the 1980s, millions more have arrived and want the same for themselves.

So, “due to no fault of their own,” Americans have been bamboozled into subsidizing services for millions of people until they are deported and must finance border security enhancements to prevent a recurrence.

The American voice has spoken, and it does not have a California accent.

David Goode, Manhattan Beach

To the editor: Although I understand why many people from other countries want to live in the United States, they don’t have the right to just “decide” to move here illegally. People from all over the world wait up to 20 years for the privilege of coming here legally.

I can’t help but wonder if immigrants in the U.S. illegally had stayed in their home countries and put as much time and effort into making their own country a better to live place as they do in protesting that they have the “right” to stay here, that more countries would have their own style of the American dream.

For the greater good, citizens of other countries have to start holding their leaders responsible and implementing positive changes at home because the whole world can’t live here.

Jan MacMichael, South Pasadena

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