To Regulate Immigration, Only 4 in 10 Favor Building a Wall, While 7 in 10 Favor Requiring Employers to Use E-Verify System, More Guest Worker Visas
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Abstract
An in-depth survey finds that, to discourage illegal immigration, only 4 in 10 favor building a wall, rather a bipartisan majority of 72% favor requiring employers to use the E-Verify system to ensure that the people they hire have the legal right to work in the United States. At the same time, to meet demands for labor 69% favor substantially increasing guest worker visas.
To ensure that respondents understood the issue, they were given a short briefing on the US immigration program and a number of possible reforms in proposed Congressional legislation.
For the current programs that provide green cards to family members of citizens and permanent residents, large bipartisan majorities oppose eliminating any of the programs, and overall majorities opposed reducing their current numbers. However, majorities of Republicans favor reducing the number of green cards granted in these programs.
Notes
A policymaking simulation is an online process that puts citizens in the shoes of elected officials by simulating the process they go through in making policy decisions. Each simulation introduces a broader policy topic and then presents a series of modules that address a specific policy option that is currently under consideration in the current discourse.
For each module, respondents:
- receive a short briefing on a policy issue and the option or options for addressing it;
- evaluate arguments for and against the policy options; and
- finally, make their recommendation for what their elected officials should do.