Biden’s move on undocumented spouses is political, but also fair

Of course it is a cheap, election-year stunt, but that doesn’t mean that it’s wrong.

I reference President Joe Biden’s just-announced policy to clear the way to legal status for the undocumented spouses of American citizens.

There are several provisos, a key one being that they must have resided in America for 10 years without being in trouble with the law.

If you’ve been following me for a while, you know I am pretty tough against people who arrive here illegally. They ought to be turned around at the border and sent home, or deported if they overstayed their visas, if they came here legally.

But . . . .

Is their crime more serious than assault or rape?

Yet for those crimes, there is a statute of limitations.

That’s why, almost five years ago, I proposed a five-year statute of limitations for the crime of illegal entry. It is not amnesty, it is just.

If ICE can’t find you in five years, you get to stay.

You don’t get a path to citizenship. That would be a reward for bad behavior. You don’t get to vote.

You would get a green card and legal status, allowing you to stay, and to work, and to raise a family. If you break the law while on your green card, it gets revoked, and you get deported.

Ordinarily, foreigners marrying American citizens are themselves naturalized as citizens after a wait period. In this case, because the spouses are here illegally, they can’t get legal status.

That seems unfair and Biden’s policy, although obviously political, is justifiable mercy.