A moratorium on immigration

On the heels of a terrorism-filled weekend, the spotlight during this presidential campaign season has returned to the sticky question of immigration.

Despite political differences on countless issues, immigration provides the most stark difference between the two political parties.

The Democrats are promising a substantial increase in immigration while the Republicans want an increase in vetting and a decrease in those rushing to our shores.

But events like those over the weekend will only bolster the argument against an open border policy to an American public already opposed to the flood of immigrants seeking asylum here.

Into this combustible issue comes Pope Francis, who this weekend urged his followers to welcome immigrants into their homes.

But good Pope Francis missed the mark in his comparison of the current wave of immigrants to those seeking refuge during biblical times.

The portrait painted by the Democrats is one of immigrants fleeing their homeland for the security and freedoms of this great country.

But the reality is that far too many of these newcomers have no plans of assimilation and want to bring their culture and their values to the United States.

And when some of those immigrants continue to oppose American values and policies, all too often they resort to the violence that struck our nation this weekend.

To advocate on behalf of unfettered immigration is to ignore common sense and the realities of today's world.

But we are not alone in this growing concern. Germany's national elections this Sunday saw an astonishing victory for a pro-German party that seeks to reduce drastically the immigration policies there.

And yet into this mounting concern comes Hillary Clinton, who proposes massive increases in Syrian refugees and a relaxation of our policies on the southern border with Mexico.

Despite a lofty facade, the Democrats seem more intent on welcoming future Democratic voters than they are on providing true compassion.

Until we as a nation can assure immigrants are not potential terrorists, a moratorium on immigration seems appropriate.

If you think that's xenophobic just read the headlines from Monday morning.

The federal government mistakenly granted citizenship to 858 immigrants recently who had pending deportation orders from countries of concern to national security or immigration fraud.

Homeland Security found that the immigrants used different names and birth dates to apply for citizenship and they weren't caught because of a faulty fingerprint database here.

Plans to upgrade that faulty database are promised. But you know what you can do with federal government promises.

Michael Jensen is the publisher of the Sikeston Standard Democrat.