I'm glad to have opened this discussion which, I hope, will remain civil.
I wanted to show that the US is far from being the country with the highest immigration per capita, legal or not. As was pointed out, the US has a high proportion of illegal immigration. Some like to emphasize that it's illegal, essentially blaming the immigrants, while in Europe they are more honest by calling them refugees, even if that immigration is froth with abuse.
I believe very few who feel safe and have work opportunities want to leave their country of origin. This was the case for our forefathers and it's also the case for those coming to America today, legally or not.
I'm not a proponent of illegal immigration, but I strongly believe in the freedom of movement. The reason so many cross the border illegally is because the path to legal immigration is so convoluted -sometimes in excess of 15 years and major expenses to get a visa- that most only see closed doors and are willing to risk everything, including their lives, to make it to America.
Can you
I'm aware of the push towards a point system, similar to the Australian immigration process. They evaluate their labor shortage and encourage that specific type of immigrants, usually skilled blue collar labor.
I'm not a proponent of that system, primarily because America has demonstrated over and over that great accomplishments can be achieved from immigrants who started with nothing more than their will to succeed. In my opinion, pre selection is elitist, drains developing countries of their skilled labor and won't stem the influx of people fleeing violence and/or poverty in their country.
On the other hand, the US could do far more by applying carrot and stick to countries known for their violence towards their population. We could do much more to prevent weapons from falling in gang hands, or stimulate local economies by providing easier access to the US market. Increase in national wealth will decrease the level of illegal immigration.