Immigration 2: Legal Residency Instead of Citizenship

Previously I considered allowing illegal immigrants the opportunity to become citizens. I now think a better idea would be to allow them legal resident status but do not grant them citizenship. As legal residents they would be protected by the law and be eligible for medicare and medicaid, but not be eligible for social security or voting rights. As any comprehensive immigration policy must include boder security, I would expect the total numbers of illegal immigrants to decline with time, as well as a proportionate decline in the number of illegal immigrants who become legal residents.