April 03, 2006

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Scan) - Many adults in the United States are critical of the influence of immigrants in their country, according to a poll by SRBI Public Affairs for the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Pew Hispanic Center. 52 per cent of respondents believe immigrants today are a burden on the U.S. because they take jobs, housing and health care.

(Angus Reid Global Scan) - Many adults in the United States are critical of the influence of immigrants in their country, according to a poll by SRBI Public Affairs for the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Pew Hispanic Center. 52 per cent of respondents believe immigrants today are a burden on the U.S. because they take jobs, housing and health care.

Conversely, 41 per cent of respondents believe immigrants strengthen the U.S. because of their hard work and talents.

Last month, the Pew Hispanic Center calculated the number of undocumented immigrants in the United States at somewhere between 11.5 million to 12 million. While California is home to most workers, Arizona, Georgia and North Carolina have the greatest rates of increase.

In January 2004, U.S. president George W. Bush tabled his proposal for a major overhaul of the U.S. immigration system. The plan includes a "temporary worker program" that would grant legal status to undocumented workers, who would pay taxes, be required to return to their home country after three years, and receive no special preference if they decide to apply for permanent citizenship.

On Mar. 31, Bush discussed his immigration policies, saying, "Employers must be held to account if they're employing the people in our country illegally. However, part of the problem is (...) that there has been a lot of document forgery. There's an industry that has sprung up, and part of that industry is to provide forged documents so that our employers don't know whether a person is in our country legally, or not. (...) I believe if someone has been here in our country illegally they should not get at the head of the line if they want to become a citizen."

Polling Data

I'm going to read you some pairs of statements that will help us understand how you feel about a number of things. As I read each pair, tell me whether the first statement or the second statement comes closer to your own views—even if neither is exactly right.

Immigrants today are a burden on our country because they take our jobs, housing and health care	52%
Immigrants today strengthen our country because of their hard work and talents	41%
Neither / Both / Not sure	7%

Source: Schulman, Ronca, & Bucuvalas (SRBI) Public Affairs / Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Pew Hispanic Center
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 2,000 American adults, conducted from Feb. 8 to Mar. 7, 2006. Margin of error is 3 per cent.

Complete Poll (PDF)

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