Any change in our immigration system ought to be done with care and logic. Instead, the new GOP majority in the House is pushing a simplistic bill that would do more harm than good.

The legislation would abolish the Diversity Visa Lottery, through which as many as 55,000 prized green cards a year are given to people from countries with low rates of immigration – in Eastern Europe, Africa and elsewhere in the developing world.

China, India, Mexico and other countries that already send large numbers of immigrants are ineligible.

The lottery is one of the few legal immigration pathways for those without family or job connections in the United States; since it started in 1995, more than 785,000 visas have been issued.

It makes real the inscription on the Statue of Liberty: "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free."

Of the millions who apply – a record 15 million last year – about 90,000 to 100,000 are randomly chosen to go through the full application process. They must have completed high school and pass background checks.

There are problems with the lottery. A 2007 report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office found that it is vulnerable to fraud. There are "visa agents" who try to game the system or who prey on applicants. Fake birth certificates and other documents are used. Applicants come from countries listed as state sponsors of terrorism.

This year, an embarrassing computer glitch forced a do-over. Instead of randomly selecting winners, the software picked 90 percent of those who applied in the first two days of the monthlong lottery.

But the solution is to fix the lottery, not kill it.

The requirements could be changed to encourage applicants with more education or skills. Or some visas could be reallocated something along the lines of a bill sponsored by Rep. Darrell Issa, a Vista Republican who wants to increase slots for immigrants with advanced degrees from U.S. universities to keep more of the best and brightest here.

The State Department could tighten vetting to reduce fraud and keep out troublemakers. Or applicants from countries on the terror list could be barred, as the department's own inspector general has recommended.

All too typically, however, many House Republicans are supporting the most extreme measure. Wednesday, they rammed through the House Judiciary Committee a bill to abolish the lottery altogether, claiming that it is "plagued by fraud" and "an open door to terrorists." The 55,000 visas would disappear, cutting the total number of legal immigrants.

Versions of their bill failed to get through the Senate in prior years. It falls again on the Democratic majority in the Senate to insist on a compromise that improves the lottery. If Republicans refuse, the Senate should continue to block the measure.

This bill is a distraction from the comprehensive immigration reform we badly need. The time and energy of Congress would be much better spent on that.

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