Would be fun, I say, to find right where in the law it says:
1. To walk on American soil, you must either be a citizen or have proper paperwork.
2. It is the federal government that bequeaths upon those from foreign lands the right to be here.
Unfortunately, I believe I have found the second citation. I say it be unfortunate, because I quite like the idea of Utah granting passes to those from foreign lands, allowing them to come here for jobs that await them.
Alas, I found this in the Immigration and Naturalization Act: "The Attorney General (that would be the federal government) shall be charged with the administration and enforcement of . . . all . . . laws relating to the immigration and naturalization of aliens."
The only opening I see for states having authority to issue work passes is if we say "immigration and naturalization" does not include a person just being here to work. My dictionary defines "immigration" as "to come into a country and settle." Does "settle" mean stay on a permanent basis?
At best, a guest-worker program is going to attract litigation unless we get federal approval. Rather than giving up on the guest-pass idea, let's seek federal authorization. Giving states this right allows those states willing to take in these workers the right to do so while no imposing these workers on the states that do not want them.
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