Switzerland just set a great example for America on immigration we need to have a national conversation

Swiss voters went to the polls Sunday and resoundingly rejected capping the country’s rapidly growing population at 10 million by limiting immigration.Congratulations to the Swiss for staging a national conversation over immigration — something the United States urgently needs to do.The Swiss have seen their population soar by more than 25% since 2000.The newcomers are for the most part workers from neighboring European countries, not migrants from the Middle East or Africa. Even so, the right-leaning Swiss People’s Party pushed for immigration restrictions, arguing that such rapid population growth strains housing, social programs and Swiss identity.Opponents of the measure, who dubbed it a “Swiss Brexit,” warned stopping the free flow of Europeans into Switzerland would threaten its special relationship with the EU, which buys over half of all Swiss exports.They also argued Switzerland has grown wealthy over many decades, despite a lack of natural resources, by attracting foreign innovators — including the immigrants who launched giant Swiss companies like Nestle, Swatch and Novartis.It’s time for Americans to have a national conversation on immigration, as the Swiss just did.We don’t have to come to the same conclusion: The Swiss wanted to make sure their laws served the best interests of Switzerland; our laws should serve the United States.But the discussion needs to get to the heart of the matter.Sadly, our politics has been fixated on one polarizing, fringe issue — ICE and deportations — rather than on the real question: Who should we invite into the United States?The current law, the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, must be replaced with immigration standards that boost our economy and avoid dependence on public handouts.A staggering 47% of US households headed by a noncitizen collect welfare benefits such as food assistance or Medicaid, per the Center for Immigration Studies.

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