Analysis of Party Approach and Immigration Policies in the US (1993–2020)

Document Type : Original Independent Original Article

Authors

• Alireza Koohkan ¹
• Alireza Shakiba ²
• Zeynab Sadat Mousavi ²

¹ Associate Professor at International Relations, Allameh Tabatabai University

² MA. of International Relations, Allameh Tabatabaei University,

Abstract

Highlights

Introduction

The growing number and population of immigrants, especially after the Second World War, made different administrations give special attention to immigration, its outcomes, and relevant policies. At the same time, the immigration policies of the United States of America are much more dynamic and significant than those of other countries. These policies have consistently held special importance to every administration and political party in the US. In fact, the immigration policies of the US have historically been subject to change induced by both domestic and international conditions, incidents, events, and overarching national goals. Among the factors affecting the immigration policies of the US are the end of the Cold War, the September 11^th attacks, the 2007–2008 financial crises, the competitive atmosphere of the international system, and the shift away from a unipolar order. Since the inauguration of Trump’s administration and the subsequent challenges posed by its immigration policies, there has been a surge in speculations regarding the correlation between an administration’s immigration policies and the political party with which it is affiliated, namely the Republican or Democrat parties. In addition to exploring these speculations, this study aims to identify the variables associated with the immigration policies and laws of the US, especially during the administrations of Clinton, Bush, Obama, and Trump.

Methods

In this study, a qualitative-comparative approach was employed to assess the immigration policies of the US administrations. This methodological approach allows for the comparison of administrations during the time span from 1993 to 2020, thereby providing a comprehensive insight into the evolution of the US immigration policies. The indicators assessed in this comparative approach encompass the extant laws and regulations pertaining to immigrants, the number of immigrants, the contents of national security documents, and the domestic and international circumstances affecting the US. By examining the national security documents of the US, we aim to explore the various approaches adopted by each administration regarding immigration policies. This comparative study will analyze immigrant statistics from 1992 to 2020, focusing on the impact of policies and laws on the influx of immigrants into the US. For this purpose, the theoretical framework of neoclassical realism was utilized to explore the factors shaping the US foreign policy. Neoclassical realism allows for the analysis of the internal and external dimensions affecting the foreign policies of countries.

Findings

This paper aimed to analyze the effects of the parties affiliated with the elected administrations (i.e., those of Clinton, Bush, Obama, and Trump) on the employment of immigration policies and the changes made to the immigration-related laws. A comparative analysis of the Democratic administrations of Clinton and Obama indicated that they pursued divergent approaches to immigration policy. While the Clinton administration implemented an anti-immigration policy, the Obama administration adopted a protectionist approach to immigration. Moreover, a similar conflict of approaches was evident in the two administrations of the Republican Party, especially those led by Bush and Trump. In other words, despite the challenges posed by the September 11 terrorist crisis, President Bush did not adopt an anti-immigration policy even when there was an upward trend in the number of immigrants after September 11. However, the Trump administration had a largely unfavorable approach toward immigrants and aimed to inhibit immigration to the US. In addition, an analysis of the evolution of laws pertaining to border protection and visa issuance during the reviewed periods revealed that the number of restrictions or controls required for visa issuance increased over time. The steps were initiated during the Clinton administration, focusing on the modernization of structures. They were further expanded during the Bush era, particularly in response to the September 11^th attacks. More importantly, the successful advancement of immigration policies in the US has historically relied on the collaboration between the government and the Congress rather than solely relying on the will of the executive branch. This is why, despite the presence of comprehensive immigration reform programs, the policies of the administrations of both Barack Obama and Donald Trump ultimately faltered due to a lack of support from Congress.

Data analysis shows that the Clinton administration witnessed a noticeable decline in the number of immigrants admitted in comparison with its predecessor. In particular, during the four-year period from 1989 to 1992, the previous administration admitted a substantial total of 5,426,084 immigrants. In stark contrast, the first four years of the Clinton administration saw a notably lower figure of 3,343,646 immigrants entering the US. During Clinton’s eight-year tenure, there was a noticeable decline in the number of immigrants admitted, reaching its lowest level compared with both preceding and succeeding administrations until 2019. During Bush’s tenure, the rate of immigration admission remained relatively stable in the aftermath of the September 11^th attacks, particularly in 2002. However, after extensive research, reform programs were launched, resulting in a decrease in the number of immigrants admitted for the next two years, i.e., 2003 and 2004. However, it is worth noting that this policy was not implemented permanently. In the following years, the number of immigrants admitted exceeded one million. During the Obama administration, there was an intention to increase the acceptance of elites from various regions across the globe. However, the statistics from 2009 to 2016 indicate that the government’s efforts fell short of achieving its objectives. Moreover, the number of these immigrants only saw an increase during Obama’s second term. During the Trump administration, there was a noticeable decline in the admission of immigrants from 2017 to 2019. Contrary to expectations, there was no significant decline in the number of immigrants admitted. In terms of migrant labor admissions, there were minimal changes compared with the Obama administration. However, when it comes to the admission of skilled immigrants, there was a noticeable decline under the Trump administration in contrast to that of Obama. Nonetheless, the process of admitting skilled and labor immigrants has remained nearly constant in the Trump administration. In terms of increasing the ratio of skilled workforce to the number of workers within their respective administrations, the Obama administration demonstrated greater success than that of Trump in bolstering the number of experts. Since 2018, there has also been a noticeable upward trend in the number of arrests at the US southwest border.

Conclusion

The research findings indicated no significant correlations between the party approach (Republican and Democrat) and the adoption of immigration policies. This finding supports the research hypothesis, which suggested that there were no direct links between the US immigration policies and the political parties in charge. Furthermore, security and other political and economic factors are involved in the immigration policies of the United States of America.

Keywords

• Immigration
• immigration policies
• immigration laws
• party
• government
• United States of America

Main Subjects

• Parties
• United Stats of America
• Politics