Tate Watkins on How Haiti Highlights the Failures of U.S. Immigration Policy
It's no secret that much U.S. aid to Haiti since the devastating 2010 earthquake hasn't been spent effectively. An Associated Press report from earlier this summer noted that "the fruits of an ambitious, $1.8 billion U.S. reconstruction promise are hard to find." Another recent AP report about a USAID audit described how the largest U.S. contractor working in Haiti hasn't monitored its projects adequately and isn't on track to complete its assignments on schedule. Nearly three years after the disaster, more than 350,000 displaced Haitians remain living in tent camps.
With foreign aid failing, it's time to consider an alternative way to help Haiti recover. As Tate Watkins reports, with the stroke of a pen, President Barack Obama could allow more than 100,000 Haitians to come to the U.S. to wait for their already-approved family-based visas, apply for work authorization, and eventually help support family still in Haiti via remittances.