No one admires RR as much as me but the 1986 amnesty failed, we don't need another one and we don't need another Bracero program. If more immigrants are necessary and that can be demonstrated then simply raise legal immigration quotas.
And it should include countries from all over the world, not just Mexico. There are plenty of people from Poland, China and other places who'd love to come to the US and be productive citizens.
Then why don't you follow Reagan's vision of tearing down draconian walls.
Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall. Berlin, 1987
Immigrants come to stay, bring families and apply for citizenship, but not necessarily work. Guest laborers come alone to work, cannot apply for citizenship and return home.
It would certainly be easier just to up the immigration allowance and shorten the application period to a couple months. The Immigration Reform Caucus would go postal but it would be a lot easier to do.
But why would you prefer permanent immigrant families over temporary guest workers?
Mostly because we needed to get rid of the massive amounts of Mexican workers that we allowed in the country to cover the vacancies created a few years before by the troops engaged in fighting a World War.
The troops were home, and by 1954 they were back at work, and their children were entering the job market...so out with the Mexicans!
By the way, we ripped off many of the people who came here legally, under the Bracero program, worked and went home.
The're still trying to get paid today.