Posted on 04/24/2006 7:13:42 PM PDT by Revel
Apr 24, 6:11 PM (ET)
By JENNIFER LOVEN
(AP) President Bush makes remarks at a 'John Porter for Congress' luncheon in Las Vegas, Nev. Monday,...
IRVINE, Calif. (AP) - President Bush had a blunt message Monday for fellow Republicans focusing only on get-tough immigration policies: He said sending all the nation's estimated 11 million illegal immigrants back to their home countries is not the answer.
"Massive deportation of the people here is unrealistic - it's just not going to work," Bush said. "You know, you can hear people out there hollering it's going to work. It's not going to work."
With Congress coming back from a two-week spring recess to a long election-year to-do list and tensions flaring nationwide over immigration, Bush urged lawmakers to adopt a middle-ground policy. He called a Senate bill, which creates a way for illegal immigrants to work legally in the United States and for many to eventually become citizens, an "important approach."
"It's just an interesting concept that people need to think through," Bush said of the bill sponsored by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., which stalled before the congressional break.
As for Bush's comment on deportation, a Time magazine poll in January found 50 percent of the country favored deporting all illegal immigrants. But even Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., one of Congress' most outspoken advocates for tougher immigration laws, does not advocate mass deportation.
Well aware that November elections could end GOP control of Congress, Bush is walking a fine line on the emotional immigration issue, between his party's conservative base which wants a clampdown on illegal immigration and business leaders who believe the economy needs immigrants to fill jobs.
All sides are exerting pressure.
With armed citizen patrols popping up in border states, leaders in Arizona and New Mexico have pleaded for better policing of U.S. borders while other communities complain about the pressure that burgeoning immigrant populations are placing on local services. At the same time, tens of thousands of Hispanic and others - a potentially important voting bloc - have taken to streets across the country in the past few weeks to demand more immigration-friendly policies.
Reflecting that debate, when Bush turned to the audience assembled by the Orange County Business Council for questions, three of the eight queries he took were on immigration, including one from a woman who asked for his solution to emergency rooms crowded with poor people seeking routine care. Southern California's Orange County is a heavily Republican swath of sprawling Los Angeles suburbs that has been known - even parodied - as white, rich and conservative. But minorities now make up a majority of residents.
Bush said community health centers are the best place for the poor to get primary care. "There needs to be a campaign to explain what's available for people so that they don't go to the emergency rooms," he said.
He sought to highlight the contributions of immigrants to American society, and lamented the harsh - and sometimes deadly - conditions that many people face trying to illegally enter the country.
"One thing we cannot lose sight of is that we're talking about human beings, decent human beings that need to be treated with respect," the president said.
The House has passed a law-and-order immigration bill that would erect fences along the Mexican border and treat people who sneak across as felons to be deported. An alternative Senate measure would set up a temporary guest worker program, like the McCain bill, but require all illegal immigrants to leave the United States before they could apply for the visas.
As he has before, Bush stopped short of directly endorsing the McCain bill. The White House will go no further than to call it an attractive vehicle to keep negotiations moving.
The bill, also sponsored by Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., would boost border security but also create three-year visas for guest workers. Those who have been in the country longer than five years would not have to return home to apply for the visas. It would also allow for the workers to apply for legal permanent residency after paying a $2,000 fine, learning to speak English and working six years.
In an apparent, though indirect reference to Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, Bush said the McCain measure had been derailed by "needless politics." Republicans have been blaming Reid, D-Nev., for blocking the bill because he failed to reach agreement with Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn. on a procedure for voting on amendments sought by GOP opponents of the legislation.
"President Bush likes to point his finger on immigration and many other issues. Isn't it about time we moved beyond that?" Reid said Monday on the Senate floor. "The Senate can move forward on immigration if the president will stand up to those in his party who are filibustering."
Bush's immigration speech, and a later event at a Las Vegas casino that raised $400,000 for Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., ended a four-day stay in California. Bush is to meet at the White House Tuesday with a bipartisan group of senators on immigration.
one hurts big bidness (big pharma)
the other helps big bidness.
I think big pharma got behind on paying their protection money.
I suggest the prez mandate that every illegal bring with them one barrel of oil.
WHY NOT? Well then how many illegals can we deport?
I so heartily agree. It seems that the republicans are compulsively self-destructive.
It is almost perversely curious. Why would anyone in politics do this?? Their poll numbers are tanking, they know the will of the American people (from other polls), their internals must indicate that the principle reason for their dropping poll numbers is the loss of their conservative base. Consider, the poll here on FR indicates that only 40% of FR members will vote GOP. 40% on Free Republic!!!!! (Moreover, the sample size was large enough that the precision is quite small).
Finally, I don't buy the argument that polls mean nothing or the truly imbecilic comment that Bush isn't running again. Even if you allow for the biases, the numbers are well below the bias error. And there is an associative effect. If Bush is down, he takes the rest of the republican party with him. Consider Nixon and the 1974 and 1976 elections.
80 percent, if the figures I have read are correct. I can't remember there being that strong of a consensus on any single issue in the whole time I have been following politics.
If it bothers Bush and the fat-cat industrialists who like cheap illegal alien labor, tough titty.
this is one issue that a wide majority af Americans agree on and he needs to realize that.
for cryin out loud you've got black militants going to the border to be alongside the minutemen.
oh and welcome to Free Republic...
Amen...In my small feeble opinion the President is finally show his true colors...Getting the nation to rally around 9/11 was something most decent politicians could do, but to face real issues that doesn't have a clear antagonist takes a wise mind and skillful strategy and the President has rarely shown he possesses both of those characteristics...I hate to say it on here, but I knew the exposure of the Presdient was coming...
Don't feel like the Lone Ranger on that one.
I've just been reviewing several of the threads that I've been keeping open and responding to tonight and most of what I am seeing today would have been 'zotted' had it been posted months ago.
I find it interesting how deporting millions is declared impractical, yet the government can't contain its enthusiasm to eventually link hundreds of millions to a central database via biometric identification and cross referenced personal/medical/criminal information.
DU, a while back.
Aye, there's the rub. When it's "all over" we'll be luck not to have a chip in our hand or forhead. A GREAT COMPROMISE. Real ID for all. That's the only reason I object to the id for them...it will be soon id for us.
Well, those other countries sponsor (some shout it from the rooftops) terrorism. I didn't see any Muslims in any of the photos that freepers posted, so its a bit of an unfair comparison.
Yeah, but our govt isn't executing people by the millions (Waco was less than 500 so it doesn't count for Amnesty International or Human Rights Watch.) like those evil commie dicatatorships who also track their citizens. If you've done nothing wrong, there's nothing to hide, right?
/s
Once the above are deported, I'd be willing to see a million or so work permits issued.
Then a few more once some additional milestones are met such as:
In addition to enforcement activities against the illegal alien invaders, enforcement of existing labor laws is a must milestone to which guest worker permits shall be tied. Employers who have clean records would have first dibs on such guest worker permits. Those who do not would be fined sufficiently to finance the program.
Once again we here no americans will take the job, only families and hard working people come here
will get lazy welfare people up and working mothers work daily while there children are in school, explain the 29% of illegals in jail and as far as mass deports they didn't come over night show start working on it now.
and as far as picking the produce we got hundreds of homeless people in San Fran sicko round them up give them a bath, food, and shelter and make them pick the food and than maybe Gavin can have people come back to the city without have to smell urine all over the place but no we can't do that it is against there civil rights and frankly if gas keeps on going up you might find americans who need a second job just to pay to get to work
How to make it work? Simple. Deny the illegals work and benefits and they will deport themselves back home to Mexico. Make the risk benefit analysis favor leaving.
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