Posted on 05/17/2006 5:02:57 PM PDT by notes2005
WASHINGTON - Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, who has pushed a tough border security bill through the House, accused President Bush on Wednesday of abandoning the legislation after asking for many of its provisions.
"He basically turned his back on provisions of the House-passed bill, a lot of which we were requested to put in the bill by the White House," Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., angrily told reporters in a conference call. "That was last fall when we were drafting the bill, and now the president appears not to be interested in it at all."
Sensenbrenner chairs the House Judiciary Committee and would be the House's chief negotiator on any final immigration package for Bush's signature. He said it was the White House that had requested two controversial felony provisions in the bill the House passed last winter.
"We worked very closely with White House in the fall in putting together the border security bill that the House passed," he said. "... What we heard in November and December, he seems to be going in the opposite direction in May. That is really at the crux of this irritation," he said of Bush.
White House spokesman Alex Conant said Bush has been consistent in seeking comprehensive immigration reform. "He applauded the House's action to strengthen our borders and is now urging the Senate to pass a bill," Conant said.
Sensenbrenner spoke with reporters as the Senate worked this week on a broader bill that generally follows the approach Bush laid out Monday night in his nationally televised speech. That includes offering most of the nation's 12 million illegal immigrants an opportunity to eventually become citizens — an act that Sensenbrenner and other conservatives label as amnesty.
"I was very disappointed in the president's speech," Sensenbrenner said. "I think he doesn't get it."
Asked if Bush mollified conservatives in the speech by calling for sending National Guard troops to states along the Mexican border, Sensenbrenner said, "He failed in that completely."
And despite Bush's insistence that he was not calling for amnesty, Sensenbrenner said, "Well it is an amnesty, because it allows people who have broken the law to stay in the country."
"The president has repeatedly and forcefully rejected amnesty," Conant said. "Under his plan, you're going to have to pay stiff fines, follow the law, stay employed, learn English and — after achieving all those things — go to the back of the line."
Sensenbrenner did not attend a closed-door meeting between Bush political adviser Karl Rove and House Republicans, but said that some members complained to him that Rove didn't stay around for many questions or hear what lawmakers had to say.
"The overwhelming majority of those that I talked to who were at the conference believe that he dissed the House Republicans," Sensenbrenner said.
Call you House Reps., they are our last defense.
Payback is a b*tch.
BOHICA
This is one reason why we cannot stay home in Nov. We must fight for the House
Sensenbrenner is my rep, IMO, this article is leaving out details that spin it positively towards MSM bias. Sensenbrenner is a honest guy, what you see is what you get. He's not the type to pull this stunt.
"He said it was the White House that had requested two controversial felony provisions in the bill the House passed last winter."
No way! New respect for Team Bush! I thought the Democrats voting against removal of the felony provisions to act as a poison pill was a clever tactic anticipating the protests. Rove (or some advisor/lobbyist) planned it from the start!
My position for now. :)
Bush and company are beginning to act just downright strange on this issue. Someone somewhere has threatened him or something. I just don't get their position. He's totally turning his back on Americans. The Mexican politicians are dictating our border policy. Very strange.
Dick Durbin (D-IL) says that President Bush "gets it".
Bush has emerged as a smug jerk now that he's been re-elected.
Click HERE for those links
"Under his plan, you're going to have to pay stiff fines, follow the law, stay employed, learn English and — after achieving all those things — go to the back of the line."
stiff fines: who will collect them? how can we expect illegals to pay if we don't know where they are? they are already committing identity fraud, which is a felony and carries a $250,000 fine (for S/S fraud, anyway)
follow the law: already law-breakers being here, not to mention the murders, fraud, rapes and other crimes they are committing
stay employed: how will we monitor this? no mention of eliminating welfare for illegals?
learn English: not enforcable at all. they will not learn English because it is becoming more and more unnecessary, especially when they have satellite tv and millions here who speak their native language and can translate if necessary. no mention of establishing English as the national language?
go to the back of the line: how? they are already here -- they jumped the line
I don't know why it's considered "controversial" to make it a felony to illegally enter the country since it's already a felony if you do it a second time once deported first.
What's really strange is how the media and the left wing blogs are trying to balance Bush/Rove-hate with the reality they are on the same side.
At least we have the House, they seem to be the only ones with any common sense left.
http://www.house.gov/
No.
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