Posted on 07/14/2006 7:11:56 PM PDT by calcowgirl
UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger scolded Congress on Friday for failing to enact immigration reforms, saying lawmakers should put aside election-year politics and get to work on a plan that would strengthen the border and allow temporary workers to come here legally.
The Republican governor showed growing impatience with Washington and his own party, saying illegal crossings and drug-running will persist at the border as long as the House and Senate remain deadlocked. He also criticized lawmakers for holding hearings on the issue in cities across the nation.
"Don't run around the country now ... and have all these hearings. You've had for the last 20 years the time to have the hearings," Schwarzenegger said in remarks to members of the California Newspaper Publishers Association.
Congress needs to "do the work and be responsible," he said.
Schwarzenegger has long faulted the federal government for lax security at the border and praised efforts by the Minutemen civilian border patrols to fill the gap.
California has more illegal immigrants than any other state - an estimated 2.4 million, more than the entire population of Nebraska.
On June 1, Schwarzenegger agreed to send the California National Guard to the Mexican border to help the federal government's effort to curb illegal immigration. But he has called the approach flawed, saying a comprehensive solution is needed that would include a temporary worker program along with tougher border security.
"I'm very concerned right now that the federal government has been, you know, too lax about that issue," the governor said. "They have to figure out a way of reforming the immigration laws so that we can bring - legally - workers into the United States."
In a global economy, workers need to be able to cross borders as needed, particularly for industries such as agriculture and construction, Schwarzenegger said.
The House and Senate are holding competing hearings this summer on immigration, with the House focusing on tighter border enforcement and the Senate promoting an approach that includes a pathway to legalization for many illegal immigrants.
~ Got the Zot ~
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