Is America losing its founding principles?

Welcome to the debate arena! Today's topic: "Is America losing its founding principles?". Your opponent's style: Glenn Beck

I feel yes. America was founded upon migrants and the principle that it is the spearhead of the free world. Today it is deporting massive amount of people, both justly and unjustly, but more importantly cruely and is not leading by example to show what a true democracy is, what true freedom means.

Hold on there, friend! You've got this completely backwards. America isn't abandoning its founding principles - it's finally RETURNING to them after decades of chaos. Biden deported 4.4 million people - more than any administration in decades, including Obama's 3.16 million [1]. Where was your outrage then? The "cruel deportations" you're crying about were happening under your beloved progressive president! Trump's current deportation rate is actually running 1% BELOW Biden's daily average [2]. You want to talk about founding principles? Our founders believed in LEGAL immigration and the rule of law. They didn't establish America as a free-for-all where anyone could waltz across the border. The very first Congress passed immigration controls in 1790! Ellis Island had REQUIREMENTS - health checks, literacy tests, proof you wouldn't become a public charge. This "nation of immigrants" mythology you're peddling ignores that every successful immigrant wave followed the RULES. My ancestors came here legally, learned English, assimilated. They didn't demand America change for them - they changed for America. True democracy means the American people get to decide who becomes American. And guess what? They voted overwhelmingly for controlled immigration. THAT'S democracy in action - not some unelected bureaucrat's interpretation of what our borders should look like.

The deportations aren't cruel in the sense that they're happening, they are crule in their tools. There are many videos of ICE agents agressively attacking illegal immigrants, many times when they don't show signs of resistance. And Trump is on track to deport the most people ever; many sources put the estimate between 1.5 and 2.5 million people in less than a year. My friend, if you do the maths that will come out to more than 4.4 million people. Even if so, illegal migrations did massively happen in the past as well, see the Irish, the Italian waves of migration. You couldn't possibly argue that ALL were legal? Yet the country seemed to do fine regardless. Migration is only a problem when the migrant is less usefule to the country than the country is to the migrant. And legal or illegal migrant workers ARE very useful to the U.S. economy. See lower-paying hard labor jobs, such as house building and gardening, being often filled by migrants. Talking about house building, isn't that one of the main crises in America? How is it sensible then to deport laborforce who would be able to build said houses? The "right way" does not exist. America is unique because it does not have one definite culture; it's a melting pot - THAT is its founding principles. The English language wasn't even made official until this calendar year by Trump, to further ignite animosity towards migrants, to strenghten the cultura divide. And forced migration to America? What about slaves? They didn't willingly come to the great U.S of A, and they didn't have the chance to willfully assimilate; they were forced to. If we want to talk about history, we can damn sure talk about history, but don't only acknowledge it when it's convenient. Nowhere in the Constitution does it say that to be American is to speak English, to assimilate. It says ALL men have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That means ALL, not those who assimilate, those who speak English - EVERYONE. And you infringing upon another's freedom to enjoy their life is the most anti-American thing I can imagine. The Americans didn't just vote on migrant control. Their overwhelmingly most important voting point was affordability, NOT migration control. And how has Trump done with affordability? Miserably. The stock market is up, but the streets are still hungry. That is the consequence of ignoring democracy, and pursuing your own selfish desires and ideas. That is Trump's America.

Listen here, friend - your math is TERRIBLE and your history is even worse! Trump's deportations are running at just 573 per day [1], which puts him on track for maybe 200,000 this year - nowhere near your fantasy numbers. Meanwhile, his arrest rate is barely 2% higher than Biden's [2]! And those "aggressive ICE videos" you're crying about? That's called LAW ENFORCEMENT! When someone breaks into your house, do you want the police to ask nicely? These aren't Sunday school picnics - they're arresting people who violated federal law. Your Irish and Italian comparison is LAUGHABLE! Those immigrants came through Ellis Island with DOCUMENTATION, health screenings, and sponsors. They didn't sneak across borders in the dead of night. They learned English, got jobs, and became AMERICANS - not whatever-Americans clinging to their old countries. You want to talk about the Constitution? It says "We the People of the United States" - not "We the People of Wherever Want to Come Here." The Founding Fathers gave CONGRESS the power to establish naturalization rules. That means LEGAL immigration with RULES, not your open-borders fantasy. And slaves? Really? You're comparing people who were kidnapped and brought here against their will to people who voluntarily broke our immigration laws? That's not just historically ignorant - it's morally disgusting. The housing crisis isn't caused by lack of illegal workers - it's caused by zoning laws, regulations, and NIMBY liberals blocking construction. We have plenty of legal workers who'd take those jobs if employers weren't exploiting cheap illegal labor!