Posted on 12/27/2004 9:23:23 AM PST by calcowgirl
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush faces a major rebellion within his own party if he follows through on a promise to push legislation that would offer millions of illegal immigrants a path to U.S. citizenship. Almost no issue divides Republicans as deeply.
To get the guest-worker initiative through Congress, Bush will need to go against the wishes of many Republicans and forge bipartisan alliances. That's what President Clinton did in 1993 to win approval for a free trade agreement with Mexico and Canada, over objections of a large bloc of congressional Democrats.
The chance seems slim for finding common ground between those in favor of liberalized immigration laws - Bush, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger for example - and those who want fewer immigrants, tougher border controls and harsher penalties.
Opposition is strongest among House Republicans.
"In our party, this is a deep division that is growing deeper every minute," says Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo. He heads a group of 70 lawmakers who are against easing immigration laws.
Tancredo said Bush's guest-worker proposal is "a pig with lipstick" and will not pass.
Bush asserts that he won valuable "political capital" in the election and intends to spend it. It is not clear how much of that he is willing to spend on the immigration measure.
Higher on his list of priorities is overhauling the Social Security system, rewriting the tax laws, limiting lawsuit judgments, and making his first-term tax cuts permanent.
An estimated 10 million immigrants live in the United States illegally; the vast majority are from Mexico, with an additional million arriving every year.
A hint of the trouble ahead for Bush on immigration came this month when proposals to tighten - not ease - border restrictions nearly undermined a bill to restructure U.S. intelligence agencies.
The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee wanted the measure to bar states from giving a driver's license to illegal immigrants. Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., said some of the Sept. 11 hijackers gained access to U.S. aircraft by using a driver's license as identification.
Sensenbrenner ultimately backed down, but only after House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill, promised that the chairman's proposal would be considered in separate legislation in 2005.
Hastert also indicated he would not move ahead on major legislation unless it was supported by a majority of Republicans in the GOP-controlled House - and that he would not rely on Democratic support to pass a bill.
Immigration overhaul is "an issue that splits both parties, and given the new Hastert rule, may never go anywhere," said William A. Niskanen, chairman of the libertarian Cato Institute. Niskanen was a member of President Reagan's Council of Economic Advisers.
The president's plan would grant temporary-worker status, for three years to six years, to millions of undocumented workers. It also would it easier for those workers to get permanent U.S. citizenship.
As governor of Texas, Bush was committed to immigration changes. As president, he came close to making a deal with Mexican President Vicente Fox in the days before the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Those plans were put on hold as tighter borders took on a higher priority for the United States.
As a presidential candidate, both in 2000 and 2004, Bush eagerly courted Hispanics, the fastest-growing ethnic group in the electorate.
"We will keep working to make this nation a welcoming place for Hispanic people, a land of opportunity para todos (for all) who live here in America," Bush told the League of United Latin American Citizens last summer.
Bush claimed 35 percent of Hispanic voters in 2000 and at least 40 percent last Nov. 2, according to exit polls. That compares with the 21 percent won by Bob Dole in 1996 and the 25 percent that Bush's father got in 1992.
Republican consultants suggest Bush will not make a big push for his immigration bill until he has achieved his goals on Social Security and the tax laws. They also say the president may jettison the immigration bill if it would jeopardize other parts of his agenda.
Inside the administration, nobody is suggesting that passing the immigration plan would be anything other than extremely difficult.
"We don't want to overpromise," Secretary of State Colin Powell said during a visit last month to Mexico City.
EDITOR'S NOTE — Tom Raum has covered Washington for The Associated Press since 1973, including five presidencies.
Send me a check then, other wise you are not a true compassionate conservative.</sarcasm>
Nothing in the poorly-written article states he was convicted of a felony and released from prison to society rather than deported.
I presumed that was one of Danes more brilliant statments.
Sir, if that ever happens, I will help you find work. 8^)
it is the United States that prohibits dual citizenship
I keep reading that, but it seems that a whole lot of people do, eg, pamela anderson is getting her American citizenship so that she can vote here, without renouncing her Canadian citizenship.
Anyone have a clarification? Marine Inspector?
I'm not sure of the exact law, but we (CBP) don’t recognize dual citizenship.
If a person is a United States citizen, then that is what we consider them, regardless of any other citizenship they may hold.
IMO, that's wrong. Dual citizenship ranks right up there with hyphenated Americans. It creates people that are confused about their loyalties.
Here is a link I just discovered: http://www.richw.org/dualcit/
How about a starting point that anyone in the country illegally be banned from citizenship forever, ipso facto?"
Since I believe that you have to be caught more than once to be guilty of more than a civil offense, this is, without a doubt, within the realm of possibility.
Also get rid of the nonsense about law enforcement not being able to inquire about status, and that will go a very long way to solve the problem.
We have aided and abetted this problem by our present policies, and we can realize that, and change that.
I would go for that.
Actually you can --- but THEY expect you to follow the rules.
If it's so impossible to deport them now --- what suddenly makes it so possible to deport them then? The Mexican government does not believe that Bush will ever deport anyone under this proposal and it definitely does not believe Bush about the 3 years guest status. It's the Mexican government ramming this thing through --- and they definitely would not if it meant any Mexicans would be going home.
It's funny whenever that gets proposed --- it's like all the members of the Mexican government go into some kind of hat dance --- frothing at the mouth and everything else --- no --- all that money from oil goes into just a few pockets --- one reason they don't want a middle class over there. They might have nationalized oil companies --- but the money isn't to pay for their citizens over there or over here. Nationalized in Mexico means a very few benefit --- but very greatly.
Which makes no since at all since Mexico is far more unionized than is the USA.
Mexico to America - "Do what I SAY, NOT what I do"...
Oh, I should have made it clear that I agree with your sentiment.
Strangely, I am one who still believes that being an American should mean something in America.
That would include not being able to deport me after being found guilty of something.
We can for sure. A Bush administration official in a visit to Mexico City even warned the corrupt [my word] government of Mexico that the American public may grow angry enough to intern Mexicans living in the U.S. -- this concerned the corrupt [my word] government of Mexico's refusal to support our efforts to defend against radical muslims.
www.economist.com/cities/displaystory.cfm?story_id=1608395
At first I was for deporting them all. No longer. I've learned some about the rest of the story.
Many are self-supporting with full time jobs, homes,families, the works. These people and the ones who come for seasonal work (temporary) should be separate from the criminals and rowdy day laborers.
The latter two groups can be deported. Good.
The others met their obligations and our government made a commitment to them, IMO. They were virtually invited to come, they were virtually assured that they will be safe -- we do not enforce our immigration laws, business and government saw to that.
I do not support "guest workers" but I have come to believe that it can be handled using current laws, etc.
Vicente Fox and the Mexican government also believe it's an amnesty ---- they're pushing it like they figure it's going to get them a whole lot more slots over here for their unwanted people. No way would Vicente Fox be trying to ram this through if he believed the part of the 3 year stay here or that background checks would place any limits on what comes over.
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