1976-Present

1976 -- Jimmy Carter vs. Gerald Ford

• During the course of his presidency, Jimmy Carter strongly discouraged the hiring of illegal immigrants, and supported legislation to increase Mexican and Canadian immigration to a total of 50,000, which was inteded to provide an incentive for legal immigration.
• In 1979, the Federation of American Immigration Reform, (FAIR) was formed, reflecting, for the first time, an environmental concern about immigration. As most immigrants have traditionally moved into American big cities and immigration had been increasing during the 1970s, environmental and community planners were worried about the overpopulation of certain areas and the strain that immigrants created on infrastructure.

1980 -- Ronald Reagan vs. Jimmy Carter

• Following the Vietnam War, most immigration to the United States was from South East Asia. Refugees and political prisoners came by the thousands to escape conflict from their troubled homelands and call America their temporary, and sometimes permanent, homes.
• By 1980, something had to be done to deal with the new surge of refugees and the Refugee Act was passed under Ronald Reagan. This act made the process different and easier for legal immigration of refugees, as well as allowed higher numbers of refugees to enter the country than would have been able otherwise.

1984 -- Ronald Reagan vs. Walter Mondale

• As part of Reagan’s new immigration policies, the Immigration Reform and Control Act, (IRCA) was passed in 1986. This act gave amnesty to nearly three million illegal aliens who were currently living within the US borders. Additionally, this act outlawed the employment of undocumented workers.
• The Immigration Reform and Control Act, formerly the Simpson-Rodino Act, was championed as a very liberal and pro-Immigrant Act because not only did it allow many illegal immigrants citizenship, it also gave a voice to those that were working under bad conditions and could otherwise not contest because of their illegal status.

"You can go to live in France, but you cannot become a Frenchman; you can go to live in Germany, you cannot become a German— or a Turk, or a Greek, or whatever. But anyone, from any corner of the world, can come to live in America and become an American." Ronald Reagan

1988 -- George H.W. Bush vs. Michael Dukakis

• The Immigration Act of 1990, passed under George H.W. Bush, removed numerical ceilings and preferential group quotas from immigration laws, which resulted in a 35% increase in immigration. This act was appreciated by those with economic interests in “high tech” immigrants, especially from India, who allowed for expansion of the booming technological industries of the late 1980s.
• Previous to the Immigration Act of 1990, during the 1980s, the US received an average of 600,000 immigrants per year. Following the act, immigration boomed to nearly 1.8 million immigrants per year during the 1990s, allowing more immigrants from Poland, Russia, Mexico, Korea, China and the Phillipines.

1992 -- Bill Clinton vs. George H.W. Bush vs. Ross Perot

1996 -- Bill Clinton vs. Bob Dole

• In 1996, the Immigration and Naturalization Service estimated that there were 5 million undocumented immigrants in the United States.
• The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 marked a new attitude toward immigration in the United States. This act made it more difficult for immigrants to obtain citizenship, made grounds for deportation more expansive and harsher, created stricter penalties for immigrants involved in criminal criminal cases as well as placed a bar from permanent residence for those who falsely claimed to be U.S. citizens. Additionally, this act called for an increase in border control, hiring over a thousand new employees.

2000 & 2004 — George W. Bush vs. Al Gore, George W. Bush vs. John Kerry

• The USA Patriot Act, (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism), passed in response to the attacks of September 11th, made US security the utmost priority, and which allowed deportation of any immigrant suspected of planning or causing terrorism.
• Post year 2000, legal immigration to the United Staes was at an average of 1,000,000 per year. Still, more than 6 million illegal immigrants, many of them from Mexico, were currently living in the United States in 2000.
• To remedy illegal border crossing from Mexico, George W. Bush called for 6,000 more staff to patrol the border, as well as the construction of border fence.

"We're launching the most technologically advanced border security initiative in American history. We will construct high-tech fences in urban corridors, and build new patrol roads and barriers in rural areas. We'll employ motion sensors, infrared cameras, and unmanned aerial vehicles to prevent illegal crossings. America has the best technology in the world, and we will ensure that the Border Patrol has the technology they need to do their job and secure our border." George W. Bush

• Due to harsh deportation laws and criminal proceedings, many cities, including Los Angeles, San Fransisco, San Diego, Chicago, Miami, Denver, Seattle and Portland have created "sanctuary ordinances" in recent years, which ban police from asking residents about their legal status.
• In 2003, the US immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) became part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The department’s new U.S. Citizenship and US immigration Services (USCIS) function is to handle US immigration services, including citizenship, refugee admission and applications for permanent residence.

2008—Hillary Clinton vs. Barack Obama vs. John McCain

• Current political debates on immigration have centered around the Mexican/U.S. border.
• A main issue is the question of whether the U.S. should continue, or cease building a border fence with Mexico and southern US states.
• Additionally, illegal immigration and Mexican paths to citizenship have been widely discussed.

"It behooves us to remember that not every single immigrant who came into the United States through Ellis Island had proper documentation. Not every one of our grandparents or great-grandparents would have necessarily qualified for legal immigration. But they came here in search of a dream, in search of hope. Americans understand that, and they are willing to give an opportunity to those who are already here, as long as we get serious about making sure that our borders actually mean something." Barack Obama