Editor, Ceres Courier,
Congressman Tom McClintock’s latest opinion, “Sorry, not sorry for immigration enforcement,” is typical of his callus and misleading rhetoric. He paints a scary, divisive picture of immigrants to distract from his own ineffectiveness as a 9-term Congressman. He claims ’simple truths,’ but there’s nothing truthful about it. My name is Michael Masuda, and I am running to unseat Tom McClintock. Let’s separate fact from fiction so we can start working toward effective solutions.
Let’s start with his lack of understanding of U.S. law. He says that “every adult who illegally enters our country ‘shall be detained.’" This is false and a misleading generalization of laws specifically focused on the border (8 U.S.C. 1225(b)) and immigrants with criminal records (8 U.S.C. 1226(c)). In reality, our immigration code is far more complex. Some laws state “an alien may be arrested and detained” (8 U.S. Code 1226(a)) while others have caveats for asylum seekers (8 U.S. Code 1225(b)(2)(A)). I would expect Congressman McClintock, the chair of the House Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement, to have a better grasp of our immigration laws.
McClintock persistently fearmongers, claiming immigrants commit heinous crimes and that President Trump is targeting “the worst of the worst.” So why are federal agents going to schools, hospitals, courts, and farms? He won’t tell you the vast majority targeted have no criminal history. A Cato Institute analysis shows over six out of 10 people detained by ICE during the Trump Administration’s first six months had no criminal convictions; only one out of 10 detained have committed a violent crime. The Trump Administration’s deportation quotas have incentivized federal agents to snatch any immigrant they find.
The price tag for McClintock’s punitive immigration enforcement is a whopping $170 billion over four years. This taxpayer money is not being invested in our failing infrastructure, building schools, educating our kids, addressing the opioid epidemic that killed 55,000 people last year, or supporting veterans. Taxpayer money that could be making our lives better is instead being wasted harassing hard working people, immigrants following the legal process, U.S. citizens, and anyone who might look “immigrant-y”.
Congressman McClintock would have you believe that immigrants are a drain on our system, while immigrants in California actually contribute an estimated $1 trillion in economic output, about a quarter of the state’s GDP. Immigrants paid $8.5 billion in taxes in 2022. In California, two out of three workers in agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting are immigrants; two in five workers in construction and skilled trades are immigrants; and one in four workers who care for the elderly are immigrants. Immigrants are also small business owners and entrepreneurs. McClintock’s support for mass deportation puts California’s economy and the livelihoods of his own constituents at risk.
Our immigration laws are a web of bureaucratic confusion and gridlock because elected officials like Tom McClintock would rather grandstand than fix them. We are a nation of laws, but those laws must be guided by common sense. We can have secure borders and a fair, humane and functioning immigration system. The path forward is through comprehensive immigration reform that addresses the root causes of migration, provides pathways to citizenship and legal working status, targets companies that abuse immigrant workers, and strengthens our economy. Achieving effective reform means both securing our borders and efficiently addressing immigration court backlogs. This approach addresses valid public concerns without resorting to divisive rhetoric. Immigration reform is possible, but it requires removing people like McClintock who have failed to address the problem.
The most truthful statement: his headline. We know he is not sorry about immigration enforcement. He’s not sorry about costing taxpayers hundreds of billions on ineffective policies. McClintock is not sorry that he’s done nothing in his 16 years in Congress to fix our immigration system. He is not sorry that he has no solutions, only fearmongering rhetoric and a stunning misunderstanding of immigration laws. He is not sorry about the harm he is causing to farmers and workers in the Central Valley who grow the crops that feed America. He’s not sorry that federal agents cowering behind masks and unmarked vehicles are upending communities. He is not sorry about the families he has torn apart or trauma he has inflicted on Americans. He’s not sorry, and that is one thing he is honest about.
Michael Masuda,
Democrat candidate for California’s 5th Congressional District
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