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The writer is the former chief executive of CKE Restaurants and author of “The Capitalist Comeback.” This appeared in the Washington Post.

Some may question the economic acumen of Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., but the candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination is clearly no slouch when it comes to the art of politics. So, when Sanders says, as he did during an April 15 Fox News town hall, that illegal immigration has become a “serious problem” that merits government action, Democratic legislators should listen. Or pay attention to a Post-ABC News poll released Tuesday indicating that Democratic voters’ concern about a “crisis” at the southern border has jumped 17 points since January.

Maybe Democrats in Congress should work with Republicans to resolve the crisis before the 2020 election.

The recent surge of Central American migrants — more than 100,000 were apprehended or denied entry in March, the most in one month in a dozen years, according to the Washington Post — is beginning to play right into President Donald Trump’s hands, and experienced politicians such as Sanders know it. That’s why he called for “sensible immigration reform” to accommodate an “overflowing” immigration system.