Both the U.S. and the UK should extend that period of time as much as possible to remove the specter of immigrant welfare use.

Immigration reform is a jobs solution that does not require cutting government programs or raising taxes.

There is undoubtedly a need for better solutions to control illegal immigration, but in the meantime, changes in the laws for legal immigrants that would shift the focus away from granting visas based on family ties and toward a system based on employer demand is a pro-growth step that we should embrace.

The Occupiers are right about American incomes: They've definitely grown more unequal. But this fact presents three inconvenient truths for the Occupy Wall Street movement.

When any economy faces challenges, the first thing it should do is determine if it has any self-inflicted wounds, as those are the easiest to correct. The evidence is clear that the benefits of skilled immigration are high. The costs of bad immigration are also high. It is past time for the nation to stop shooting itself in the foot.

While there is no such wide-ranging immigration reform bill currently making the rounds in Congress, the "Stopping Trained in America Ph.D.s from leaving the Economy" (S.T.A.P.L.E.) Act, sponsored by Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) has bipartisan support and is a step in the right direction.

Read Nick Schulz's primer on skilled immigration, which explains the economic benefits from reform to the United States.

Put aside concerns about low-skilled immigration for a moment. There is wide consensus among those who have studied the issue that skilled immigrants are a net positive for the receiving country.