Mayor Michael Bloomberg: U.S. Needs More Immigrants, Not Fewer

MYFOXNY.COM EXCLUSIVE - New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has strong feelings about immigration and the controversial Arizona law. He says that the United States is actually losing the best and the brightest people to other counties. He is calling for immigration reform and enforcement, but says that the United States needs more immigrants, not fewer. He says that magically deporting all undocumented immigrants would devastate the national economy

"The Arizona immigration law is as much evidence as you ever would need to show that the federal government is walking away from their responsibilities to decide who can come to this country, who can stay in this country, who will help this country grow," Bloomberg said.

Fox 5 Anchor Dari Alexander interviewed the mayor Wednesday about his views and the immigration reform initiative that he is spearheading.

Is it not of a concern to you that 60 percent of Americans support the Arizona law, and a majority of New Yorkers also support it?

BLOOMBERG: I don't think "concern" is the right word. I think it is shocking and terribly worrisome.

How importantly really are undocumented immigrants to New York City's economy?

BLOOMBERG: This city depends on these people. This country incidently depends on these people. You would devastate the national economy if by some magic, and that's the only way you would do it, you would find everybody who was here illegally and deport them.

You feel so strongly about the immigration issue, you've actually set up a coalition that you're spearheading. Tell us a little bit about it.

BLOOMBERG: We have a group of business people and mayors from around the country. North, South, East, West -- all political persuasions. And we're trying to put together this group to explain to the American public, explain to Congress who has to write laws, and to explain to the president, who has to instigate the laws, explain to them, this country has to fix the immigration problem. And the immigration problem is not the 12 million undocumented. … The immigration problem in this country is that the best and the brightest are now being lured to other countries to create and invent and start businesses that will be the wave of the future, rather than coming here. We are committing national suicide.

What do you see as the solution to all of this?

BLOOMBERG: The solution to our problems is more immigration, more immigrants. That's been true since the Pilgrims settled here. And will continue to be true even more so in the future as we continue to live in a more global technological world. We have to an immigration law that everybody understands and that is enforced. And the ways to do it is very simple. It is four-pronged: You give permanent status, after the pay fines, learn English, whatever, to the 12 Million. You reduce the demand for labor from illegal immigrants by enforcing the laws that the companies cannot hire undocumented. And you can only do that if you give them the tools, which is a biometric Social Security card, probably nothing else. You make sure that we go and we provide visas for those that we want. And if you do those things, you have a strategy. If you don't do those things, it's not going to work.