President Donald Trump and his cabinet can be commended for closing the border, stopping the flow of illegal immigrants, and reducing the flow of fentanyl.

We now have millions of illegal immigrants who have previously crossed our borders. We have, I believe, two classes of illegal immigrants. Criminals are one class, and the other class is made up of law-abiding immigrants seeking a better life in the U.S.

Yes, I am well aware that all illegal immigrants are not in this country lawfully. The reality is that we cannot, nor should not, send them all back to their native countries. We need to meticulously determine who the criminals are and send them back to their respective countries.

In fact, many immigrants have assimilated into the fabric of our country and are providing honest labor on our farms and other businesses.

On Thursday, June 12, Trump, responding to a question at his news conference, clearly stated, “We need to do something about the farmworkers.” He was obviously referring to the illegal immigrants providing necessary farm labor.

The solution to Trump’s concern is to provide reasonable paths to citizenship for all illegal immigrants who have been vetted to be law-abiding and productive. This solution would help our country economically and demonstrate our compassion for hard working people seeking better lives here. Again, we must be realistic and recognize that it is absolutely not feasible to send all illegal immigrants back to their native countries. God Bless America.

John H. Stephens III, Slippery Rock