In Congress, GOP regrets that harsh bill was last word

Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau ^ | April 10, 2006, 3:06PM | GEBE MARTINEZ

[Dubya]

WASHINGTON - When the U.S. House passed a bill in December making it a felony to be in the country illegally, the ''get-tough'' message became the flash point that has drawn millions of protestors into the streets.

With the Senate failing last week to finish a bill that would have rejected some of the harshest language in the House version, Republicans are expressing regret that the punitive House measure stands as the most recent congressional action on immigration.

''There are demonstrations all over America, and the House bill is the only bill out there,'' complained Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. His comprehensive border enforcement and worker visa program bill served as the framework for the Senate bill that got derailed in a partisan procedural fight.

House GOP leaders defend their decision to limit their bill to border enforcement and harsher penalties against illegal immigrants and those who hire them or give them aid. Many House Republicans also oppose President Bush's call for temporary work visas until the borders are made more secure and illegal immigration is curbed.

House sponsors wanted to erect new legal barriers to illegal immigration.In a recent letter to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, three House leaders defended the proposed penalties on those who give aid or counseling to illegal immigrants as a way to crack down on human and drug smuggling operations.

''We need to have the tools to be able to prosecute and put in jail the coyotes,'' said House Judiciary Committee Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wisc., referring to people who smuggle Mexicans and others into the United States.

Critics argue that anti-smuggling laws already are comprehensive and that Sensenbrenner was intent on cutting off humanitarian assistance to illegal immigrants.

''I would call on him to be honest and say that's what's happening,'' said Jeanne Butterfield, executive director of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

While not giving in on that point, Sensenbrenner conceded that a provision to turn illegal immigrants into felons was ''overkill.'' But he blamed Democrats for blocking his efforts to lessen the penalty.

After the bill was sent from committee to the full House for a vote, the Bush administration realized the felony aspect could lead to an unprecedented demand for jury trials for illegal immigrants, swamping federal courts and detention facilities.

If the felony penalty becomes law, it would make an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants , including those who overstayed their visas, subject to arrest and jailing for up to a year for ''unlawful presence'' in the United States.

The White House asked Sensenbrenner to reduce the proposed violation to a misdemeanor, with a six-month jail term. But a vote to cut the penalty failed at the hands of law-and-order Republicans, as well as Democrats, who wanted to show that the GOP was being mean-spirited.

The Senate version would make the violation a misdemeanor.

gebe.martinez@chron.com

[goldstategop]

To describe a lawbreaker as a felon is to make you a racist and an extremist. When you have this kind of dishonest demagoguery surrounding the immigration debate, its hard to win the argument on its merits. But then liberals know they would lose on the merits so they have to emotionalize this and call names and stop people from thinking about what is actually happening out there.

(Denny Crane: "I Don't Want To Socialize With A Pinko Liberal Democrat Commie. Say What You Like About Republicans. We Stick To Our Convictions. Even When We Know We're Dead Wrong.")

[stopem]

"House GOP leaders defend their decision to limit their bill to border enforcement and harsher penalties against illegal immigrants

Thank you GOP we support you on that!That will get you a lot of votes!

[okie01]

Has anyone else heard that? If it's true, that would sure short-circuit any attempt to cast the Repbulicans as the problem.

It's true. As a matter of fact, that's exactly what it says at the end of the article:

The White House asked Sensenbrenner to reduce the proposed violation to a misdemeanor, with a six-month jail term. But a vote to cut the penalty failed at the hands of law-and-order Republicans, as well as Democrats, who wanted to show that the GOP was being mean-spirited.

[A message]

Thanks for both replies. Good follow up.

[DoughtyOne]

Someone mentioned the idea of a chain gang the other day. Frankly, 90 days spent like that should stick with a person thinking about trying it again. The next time should be six months.

[stopem]

Our FRiend Michele Malkin is on B'O reilly. She's the best!

[robowombat]

It is even simpler. The Rinocrats want to make money, lots of it. The Demonrats want power. Thus the two share an interest in damp Americans. The Rinocrats don't care what happens to you or me or our families. They will watch the entertainment from their walled and turreted developments or individual villas and switch the channel to the Golf Station. The Rats will bring forth hell on earth with their anarchotyranny regime and love every minute of it because in their little tin-horn Nietzsche souls all they lust for is power and nihilistic ruin in the guise of 'compassion and multiculturalism'.

[EDINVA]

and I didn't know McCain was the GOP. He seems the only apologetic (not to mention apoplectic) Repub mentioned.

[DoughtyOne]

I agree with you. What you have to do is hit back harder than you're being hit. Our team seems incapable of that at times. Too bad.

[lentulusgracchus]

Most likely because he thought it was the right thing to do. I agree with him. I know you don't, so let's leave it at that. The fact still is, as I heard it this afternoon, the Pubies did try to take that out and the Dems blocked it.

The Democrats want to campaign on "The Republicans hate Latinos [sic]!"* Thus Mike Gallagher, last night (Friday's show, rebroadcast).

Let them.

*"Latino" [sic] is not a word in the English language. Furthermore, it is cant, since the English word "Latin" is applicable to a number of ethnic groups and languages, including Italian and Romanian, and so "Latino" [sic] is misleading, as the speakers intend it to apply only to a subset of the Latinate population of the planet.

[newconhere]

Seems to me the issue here is..... if you enforce the/a law you are mean, evil and not human. There should be no laws, None. Laws are bad

[okie01]

The main thing to remember about any story the Chronicle does on immigration is that they slant, they pander, and they lie.

SOP in the MSM.

[DoughtyOne]

Thanks for the response. You know what, no matter why the Dems voted for this, the Pubies should run with the fact that they did. If the Dems press, the Republicans should talk about the sanctity of the vote, and the abysmal behavior of anyone who would throw a vote. Just shove it right back in their faces.

[Robertsll]

great photo

[riri]

Can't wait until they decide to take back the land from all thw white land owners, that should be coming up soon ala Zimbabwe...

[Final Authority]

The protesters are like a woman protesting the acts of the man, husband or father, who has provided for her and protected her but has had enough of her nonsense. She stays with the man because of that but hates the knowledge of her place. She does that and a day later gets back to business doing what they do. Women vote for the father figure because of their experience in life, and then vote for the nanny figure to get back at the men they love.

If this criminal alien issue made any sense, it would be all over by now. The only solution is to throw a net over them, arrest their employers, round them up, and send them packing. Seal the borders, like we mean it, and start again debating how many and what kind of legal immigrants we need and want before we open the border to anyone again.

[Robertsll]

That is why I call the current system of handling the illegals *anarchy and chaotic*.

[DoughtyOne]

Citizen hispanics are firm believers in the rule of law. Many of them live in crime ridden neighborhoods. Many of them know who is committing that crime and want protection as much as any other U.S. Citizen.

Law and order is a very strong issue for our team, if they'll take a stand and enforce our laws.

Illegals can't vote, and Citizens want law and order. This is a no brainer as far as I am concerned.

[Dubya]

Thanks

[Dubya]

'm confused, was it Republicans or was it McCain expressing regret that the House bill was the most recent action?

So am I.