The Importance of English in the United States

There's not a general requirement for United States citizens to speak English. A lot of immigration statuses, you don't really need to demonstrate English ability. You have governments and societies that are trying to enforce certain ideas about language. What are the main views of this society? Where are the views that are prominent regarding language? And then how does that all get translated into policy decisions by the government? How do they enforce their view of language on the public?