Election 2008: What’s At Stake?

Immigration is a fraught issue, and in recent years dozens of groups have sprung up to advocate for one position or the other, to lobby Congress, to fund candidates, or to fight it out in the courts. With all the vague or patriotic-sounding names, it can get pretty confusing. You might see spokespeople from these organizations quoted as experts in news articles, but sometimes reporters fail to identify a group’s position. This weekly feature will help you become a savvier consumer of immigration news.

This week’s organization, NumbersUSA, wants to drastically reduce immigration, lowering the number of immigrants to those allowed in under the 1924 Quota Act.

Name: NumbersUSA

Type: 501(c)(4), the designation for “Civic Leagues and Social Welfare Organizations” like the National Rifle Association or AARP. NumbersUSA is technically non-partisan, however it usually endorses Republican candidates.

Stance: NumbersUSA’s primary complaint about immigration is that it contributes to overpopulation. The group’s website bemoans Americans’ “deteriorating quality of life due to sprawl, congestion, overcrowded schools, lost open spaces and increasing restrictions on their individual liberty in order to handle the new population explosion!” (Punctuation original.)

Activities: NumbersUSA blames U.S. immigration law for this perceived overpopulation, and it and its members lobby Congress and the executive branch for reduced immigration, both legal and illegal, beefed-up border security and enforcement of existing immigration laws. Numbers takes credit for preventing comprehensive immigration reform from passing last year. It also endorses “True Reform Candidates” for Congress and state offices.

Funding: The organization solicits contributions from conservative foundations and members of the public. According to RightWeb, its budget was $1.5 million in 2005.

Major Players: Former environmental journalist Roy Beck founded NumbersUSA in 1997, a year after he published The Case Against Immigration, which argued that immigration was bad for the working class. NumbersUSA is affiliated with and funded by FAIR founder and notorious anti-immigration activist John Tanton, though the exact relationship is somewhat sketchy.

Controversy: Like many immigration restriction organization, NumbersUSA is often accused of nativism or racism, especially since the group advocates for harsh treatment of illegal immigrants. Roy Beck addressed these charges in a statement titled “‘No’ to immigrant bashing.”