Posted on 05/17/2006 5:53:49 AM PDT by Reaganwuzthebest
As the Senate continues work on immigration reform, President Bush's proposals to strengthen U.S. border security still face an uphill battle in the House of Representatives.
Despite the president's call for Congress to send him an immigration bill he could sign, few lawmakers are ready to predict whether the House and Senate can come up with final legislation before November's mid-term congressional elections.
In an off-camera briefing on Tuesday for reporters, House Republican Majority Leader John Boehner praised the president for helping to frame the immigration debate.
He called Bush's proposals a big step in the right direction, but added serious disagreements remain over a guest worker program, which President Bush supports, and the general question of providing a path to citizenship.
Any bill emerging from the Senate will have to be reconciled with a measure passed by the House last December.
That legislation takes a much stronger enforcement approach than the bill being considered by the Senate, and would make illegal presence in the U.S. a felony rather than a civil offense.
Boehner expresses confidence that Republican Congressman James Sensenbrenner, the primary backer of the tougher House bill, will be able to work with Senate negotiators to produce a responsible immigration bill.
But a statement by Tennessee Republican Marsha Blackburn underscores resistance among conservative House Republicans to changing legislation the House passed last December:
"Let's say no to amnesty, or any type of amnesty, said Marsha Blackburn. "Let's continue to support construction of a border, whether it's a wall or surveillance. Let's secure our border."
President Bush says tougher border measures would include deployment of up to 6,000 National Guard troops, but stresses this should not be considered a militarization of the border with Mexico.
These steps would combine with a guest worker program to give illegal immigrants a path to citizenship, but the president reiterated this should not be considered amnesty.
Republican divisions, meanwhile, are being used by opposition Democrats to score political points. The number two Democratic leader in the House, Congressman Steny Hoyer, described Republicans as "deeply, viscerally and vigorously divided."
Hispanic members of Congress used a Capitol Hill news conference to underscore their support for the Senate version of immigration reform.
Luis Gutierrez is an Illinois Democrat and member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus:
"The question we have before us [is] do we continue to welcome people who seek a better life, who are entrepreneurial and hard-working, and ready to roll up their sleeves, and earn each opportunity," said Luis Gutierrez. "Or do we roll up that welcome mat and retreat behind multi-billion dollar fences, mass deportations, militarized borders, and punitive penalties that would make felons of social work or religious leaders, nannies and even a bus-boy?"
While praising President Bush for asserting leadership on the immigration issue, Hispanic lawmakers said his Monday speech failed to offer enough specifics.
Denny hastert, we are counting on you.
"Let's say no to amnesty, or any type of amnesty, said Marsha Blackburn. "Let's continue to support construction of a border, whether it's a wall or surveillance. Let's secure our border."
If the House stands their ground they will win big in November.
Looking for solutions for difficult problems is what separates the great Presidents from the not great. Lincoln is certainly proof of that.
One possible House conferee David Drier has come out in opposition, that's good news since he has always tended to favor amnesty:
HOW MANY OF YOU HAVE EMAILED AND PHONED THE WHITE HOUSE TODAY TO EXPRESS YOUR TOTAL DISAPPOINTMENT WITH THIS?
CALL EVERY REPRESENTATIVE YOU POSSIBLY CAN... TODAY !!! WE HAVE TO FIGHT THIS.
NO TO HAGEL - MARTINEZ BILL !!!!
There's lots of room for compromise, I just don't think amnesty should be on the table.
I think Jeff Sessions said it best on Bill Bennett this AM. Conservatives are not completely opposed to a "guest worker" program. But it cannot be done UNTIL the flow of illegals is STOPPED. That is the compromise I'm hoping the house forces onto the Senate.
HERE IS A SCALE MODEL OF THE FENCE PROPOSAL
This is the 2000 mile border each line is 100 miles. (20 dashes)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
According to senator frist the proposal has 370 miles of new walls. (3.7 dashes, rounding to 4).
- - - -
Thats it.
The senate is stuck on stupid.
The McCain amendment has Immigration Judges (aka lawyers functioning as special magistrates) determining OVERIDE OF THE ENTIRE PROPOSAL TO LET ILLEGALS STAY REGARDLESS OF THE LAW.
This is JUST PLAIN STUPID.
A good compromise would be to force the Senate to accept the Isakson amendment, which requires the border to be secured first. Anything less than that would make their immigration bill worthless.
"If the House stands their ground they will win big in November.
Let's hope and PRAY they hold their ground.
We need to disconnect the "guest worker" programs from the amnesty portion.
THERE IS NO REASON TO LEGALIZE OR GIVE ANY SLOW MOTION AMNESTY.
Have a legal guest worker program and the illegals will self deport OR CAN APPLY FOR HARDSHIP UNDER CURRENT LAW>.
So the president pushes one plan, the senate another, the house another. Nothing actually gets passed. No wall gets built and no National Guard patrols the border. And we still can buy cheap lettuce. Is that about right?
For most of us amnesty is a non-starter. The Senate did agree to a guest worker program that has a cap of 200,000 and can't be raised without a super majority. That's something conservatives could probably get behind as long as the borders are secured first and it doesn't apply to those already here and they keep it restricted to agriculture.
The first thing we need to find out is just what the President was saying when he promised 6,000 National Guardsmen on the border. Some are saying that this will be a rotation every two weeks of Guardsmen who are fulfilling their annual training exercises and that in truth, it will mean only 500 will join the BP every two weeks, making an annual total of 6,000 by the time the program ends next year. If this is so, the President did a masterful job of deceiving the viewing public, who approved of the speech because they thought he meant 6,000 Guardsmen would be deployed on the border at the same time for a year. We need to find out how many Guard troops will be on the border each month for a year. Fox News, are you investigating this?
The problem is your common sense is not common in the senate.
The senate is showing its country club YOU the peeples vs THEM your betters.
Frist was joking about his "giving people a new heart" as a trasplant surgeon. He sounded like a man with a christ complex. He sounded like the vote was a done deal and he could afford to be arrogant.
Amen. Done and done.
"So the president pushes one plan, the senate another, the house another. Nothing actually gets passed. No wall gets built and no National Guard patrols the border. And we still can buy cheap lettuce. Is that about right?"
That's right, until after the elections at which point Bush and the Globalists will have their way. Kiss a sovereign USA good bye. The New World Order is being ushered in.
comittee should be pretty scary
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