While half of Americans and a majority of Democrats say diversity makes the United States a better place to live, Republicans aren’t so sure.

Republican political leaders have invoked the language of national security when referring to immigration, calling the situation on the southern border an “invasion.” Once a term that was confined to the fringes of Republican circles, the word invasion featured prominently in midterm campaign ads for GOP candidates in Florida, Georgia, and Arizona. Former President Donald Trump certainly played a role in bringing this type of anti-immigrant rhetoric into the political mainstream. Still, some analysts argue that he simply met the Republican base where they’ve always been on immigration issues, and that previous Republican leaders who took a softer stance on immigration were, in fact, out of touch.

The growing divide between Republicans and Democrats on the issue of immigration is being caused predominantly by movement among Democrats, who have become far more pro-immigration over the last 30 years. The 1996 Democratic Party platform touted President Bill Clinton’s efforts to solve the problem of “criminal immigrants, deported after committing crimes in America, return[ing] the very next day to commit crimes again.” Two of the laws that form the foundation of the modern immigration enforcement system, essentially by expanding the grounds for detaining and deporting immigrants, were also passed under the Clinton administration. By contrast, the Democratic Party’s present immigration policy classifies detention of immigrants as a “last resort” and seeks to expand the asylum system and pathways to citizenship—a near 180-degree turn from 30 years ago.

This evolution extends to the public level, where attitudes around immigration have also been driven primarily by changes in how Democrats view the issue. Over the past two decades, Democrats have become increasingly likely to favor increased levels of legal immigration and less likely to view large-scale migration to the US as a critical threat to the country. These differing concerns around immigration also reflect differing views of the impact that the growing diversity of the country has on the United States. Additionally, while Republicans and Democrats disagree on immigration issues, both parties are also split internally—though on different aspects of immigration.

Immigration Solutions is a private company (not a lawp firm or government agency) that offers practical products that are beneficial for individuals and families who are planning to immigrate to a new country.

Why is migration a problem? Migrants eventually induce social, economic, and political problems in receiving countries, including 1) increases in the population, with adverse effects on existing social institutions; 2) increases in demand for goods and services; 3) displacement of nationals from occupations in the countryside and in the cities.