Hi, Bill...
I apologize for the delay in responding to your good question below. To be asked to actually “bell the cat,” and to suppose the power you suggest, forces some consideration!
“...if you were to have total say over U.S. immigration policy, would you eliminate all border controls and all limits on in-migration? If not, what policy would you adopt?”
I would treat immigration policy and our national borders as we do within the U.S. Each border would be based on purpose, feasibility, desirability, necessity, cost, and alternatives. I would decriminalize “undocumented immigrants.” In the past in the U.S., interstate migration has occasionally had rending impacts on host states, yet it has not been considered illegal migration. Nor has our response been to block that migration but has tended rather toward shoring up the depressed economy that drove the migration. I agree with the Sierra Club, which calls for a similar policy toward international migration. Crime involving violence, contraband, trafficking, terrorism, etc. would be treated as we do similar crimes committed in one state in the U.S. by a person from another state, where criminals are subject to jail and extradition. A uniform set of duties and privileges for all residents would be established...jury duty, conscription, seeking public office, taxes, etc. Auto insurance would be folded into gas prices...all vehicles would be insured. A fair and timely path from residency to citizenship would be available. Non-citizen residents convicted of violent crimes would be subject to prison then deportation. Specific border considerations would weigh the following:
Feasibility: History offers scant assurance that sovereign borders are defensible. In 2005 alone, along the 30 mile border between the US and Mexico in heavily-patrolled Organ Pipe Cactus National Park, over 200,000 migrant crossings were recorded. A 53 mile virtual fence between Mexico and the U.S., built by Boeing, has been mothballed after a billion dollars and poor performance(due, not surprisingly, to the effects of “...sand, heat, and wind.”). Near San Diego, within sight of the Campo, CA border guard station and a high wall, mounds of socks(used to erase footprints) along the famous Pacific Crest trail bear mute evidence to nightly migration forays. I have watched as migrants jumped off nightly freight trains near Parker AZ. Clandestine airstrips represent additional porosity.
Cost: If we choose to control thousands of miles of remote borders between the US and Mexico, Canada, and along our seashores, we should clearly define the costs, side effects, and historical successes. At perhaps $3.5 billion per year for 700 miles, or $10 billion/year for 2000 miles($5 million a mile or $1000 a foot), thousands of miles of Canada border and shoreline would remain vulnerable. Is it a good deal to pay $10 billion a year to stop 500,000 yearly crossings, at $20,000 a year per thwarted migrant? Perhaps so, but only if there were some assurance of favorable cost/benefit, and of desired outcome.
Necessity: It is correctly argued that our borders are not secure. Even so, this ineffective(some would say non-existent) border control has not led to transits remotely approaching the feared potential. The often-stated concern that 300 million people would rush illegally through open US borders is unfounded. Only about 0.17% of that number actually crosses the US border each year, in spite of ineffective patrols and barriers. Would chaos ensue if we opened our national borders to the possibility of 500,000 illegal entrants per year? Actually, chaos is what we have now, a result of our costly and futile attempts to thwart immigration. If we were to recognize that we are getting no security in return for our present border control costs, we could put to better use the more than $8 billion annual cost. Some savings would go into reducing migration pressures through investments in guest country infrastructure, women's empowerment and health facilities.
I would welcome any thoughts you have, and any references which would correct errors above.
Evan Jones
Whoa Nellie Foundation