Posted on 06/20/2002 2:47:56 PM PDT by madfly
Associated Press
EL PASO, Texas (AP) - A bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday would allow thousands of part-time foreign students to continue commuting into the United States for school.
U.S. Rep. Jim Kolbe, R-Ariz., announced the bill that would create a new kind of visa for such students.
In the recent past, part-time foreign students have entered the United States using tourist visas. But those visas are for business and pleasure trips and are not supposed to be used by students.
The INS announced earlier this year that it will begin to again enforce the long-standing visa requirements on July 1 as part of an effort to secure the nation's borders.
The INS will back up enforcement with stricter reporting requirements for schools and a new computer database to keep track of foreign students.
"Every day, many Mexican and Canadian citizens cross back and forth to shop, do business and visit relatives but if they want to take an academic or vocational class and are not full-time students, they are not allowed over the border," Kolbe said. "My bill will correct this flaw in our immigration policy."
The "F-3" visa would not include a requirement that foreign students take full course loads, which is part of the traditional "F-1" student visa. The bill also would create a new "M-3" visa for part-time vocational, trade and other nonacademic students.
Danielle Sheahan, an INS spokeswoman in Washington, said she couldn't comment on the specifics of the bill, but added: "We're happy about it. A lot of students are stuck because they live by the border."
Kolbe estimated it could affect thousands of students at border schools.
In El Paso, at least 800 part-time students at the University of Texas at El Paso and the El Paso Community College would be affected.
Eduardo Antonio Dominguez, who lives across the river in Juarez, Mexico, is a part-time student working toward a master's degree in manufacturing engineering at UTEP.
"He's at the point where he's completed more than half of it," said Mike Huerta, a UTEP engineering professor who teaches the weekend courses that Dominguez is taking. "He's invested all this time and (now we tell him), 'Guess what? You can't finish."' Dominguez works full time as a manufacturing engineer, and he and his wife are expecting their first child in September.
Kolbe said it would be a "miracle" if the bill is passed in time for the fall semester, but that it can pass quicker if there is little controversy.
The F-3 visa would be easier to get because they would not have financial requirements. Full-time students must now prove they can pay tuition and support themselves. Kolbe said that shouldn't be a problem because the requirements for the F-3 would be the same as for the tourist visa.
In 2001, the INS issued 292,764 F-1 visas and 5,376 M-1 visas for vocational, trade, or other nonacademic studies.
For comparison, in 1999, 31.4 million people entered the United States with some type of visa, according to the INS.
Sure is easy for these Senators and Congressman to give away our money isn't it?
Bingham was on O'Reilly earlier trying to explain how the States have to absorb the costs and the gov't should reimburse them. As O'Reilly eloquently pointed out -- it's not the feds who will reimburse the States but the American people who will fund it. In a country where many are without health benefits and seniors cannot afford prescription drugs, we have Rino McCain and Bingham proposing spending $24 billion of our money to keep illegals healthy!
The Tyranny of our government continues. I just have to wonder, looking at stories like this, if our elected officials are required to take a secret oath to represent illegal aliens and actively work against the interests of those they are supposed to represent. Not only are these law breaking illegal aliens awarded amnesty, they are also gifted a subsidized education as an extra-added bonus courtesy of American taxpayers for breaking our laws. This is beyond outrageous.
Our government has made a complete mockery out of the meaning of American Citizenship. Any immigrant, legal or otherwise, that manages to make it into America immediately has more rights than American Citizens. We have become Second Class Citizens in our own country and our elected officials not only think this is great, they also want to stick us with the bills—after paying for their fat salaries and multi-million dollar fringe benefits. At the bottom what's really happening is that the American People are being sold out, lock stock and barrel for PAC money that have a vested interest in the immigration free for all and socialism that is destroying this nation.
The only solution to halt this treason is to vote out EVERY INCUMBENT in both parties with few exceptions like Tom Tancredo.
Time to throw these money grubbing traitors out.
Interesting, isn't it? They operate like the scoundrels they are.
I agree, and our elected officials that support this tyranny need to be removed from office.
Bump That.
It sure is. What this shows is that most businesses only operate in their short-term interests. If these captains of industry bothered to examine what mass illegal immigration signifies for their long-term prospects many would not be sanctioning the government’s policy of inaction (or should I say encouragement?) on illegal immigration.
I just have to wonder how just about any business could expect to turn even a modest profit when the burgeoning continent of 3rd world immigrants enables the democrats (read: Socialists/Communists) to totally remove the republican party from every level government and true conservatism is nothing but a distant memory.
Open corruption has been building in our governments for decades. It is obvious that this corruption has seeped through to the boardrooms of corporate America.
Yep. When all the double-talk and outright lies are swept to the side, that is exactly where this self-centered, greedy bunch are coming from. And guess what? It won't be their kids doing the fighting and dying for this country. No, they will find away around that just like many did during the Vietnam War.
Next time a terrorist blows their building up because he got into the country by taking advantage of the debasement of the laws that they encourage by hiring illegals, let's just give them the number of the Mexican army. Tell them to ask those guys to defend them.
hehehe. That would be poetic justice.
Yes, the term "seep" was an oversight on my part. "Gusher" is far more apt description of the level of boardroom corruption in America.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.