I don’t think the United States should bribe immigrants to fight wars in exchange for citizenship. If the US does not have citizens willing to sign up for our wars, there are much bigger problems. We already successfully bribe young Americans who are poor with the opportunity to pursue a college education.
A Washington Post article disagrees. A Military Path to Citizenship, By Max Boot and Michael O’Hanlon, Thursday, October 19, 2006; Page A29
“Now is the time to consider a new chapter in the annals of American immigration. By inviting foreigners to join the U.S. armed forces in exchange for a promise of citizenship after a four-year tour of duty, we could continue to attract some of the world’s most enterprising, selfless and talented individuals. We could provide a new path toward assimilation for undocumented immigrants who are already here but lack the prerequisite for enlistment — a green card. And we could solve the No. 1 problem facing the Army and Marine Corps: the fact that these services need to grow to meet current commitments yet cannot easily do so (absent a draft) given the current recruiting environment.”
