Posted on 05/25/2007 5:22:45 PM PDT by Baladas
WASHINGTON – Texas business leaders are pressuring the state's Republican senators to back the immigration reform bill now being debated in the Senate.
A coalition of Texas businesses published an open letter to Sens. Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn in Thursday's editions of The Dallas Morning News, to "express the urgency in supporting passage of comprehensive immigration reform."
"We hope both Republican senators from Texas would get behind this bill. We think it's a unique opportunity and we need to finish the job," said Bill Hammond, president of the Texas Association of Business and a board member of Texas Employers for Immigration Reform.
The coalition members said the state and national economy would be damaged and businesses would face a labor shortage if Congress doesn't complete work on an immigration bill.
Their position mirrors that of a fellow Texan, President Bush, whose administration has been pushing through Congress a bill to provide illegal immigrants legal status and create a temporary worker program. Under the proposal, some immigrants would have to leave the country and re-enter before they could legally work.
In a conference call with reporters, business leaders said nothing can be gained from requiring the illegal immigrants to leave and re-enter the country.
"To ask them to return home and touch back is going to put a unique burden on them and on employers," said Cliff Butler, vice chairman of Pilgrim's Pride, based in Pittsburg.
Hutchison said she would try to amend the part of the Senate bill that would allow illegal immigrants to obtain four-year, indefinitely renewable Z visas that allow them to remain in the country and work and only have to return to their home countries if they want to become legal residents.
She said her amendment "will take the amnesty out of the bill and require that before a person can work in the country legally, if they are here illegally, they would have to go home and apply outside the country." Her plan would be to give the immigrant two years to leave after registering with the federal government.
Cornyn backed a similar proposal in a bill he sponsored last year.
Cornyn and Hutchison were involved in negotiations on the compromise bill, but aren't among the senators moving the bill.
Cornyn said he understands the business coalition's position and spoke with them Thursday.
"However, there are several aspects of the current bill that I'm very concerned about ... But I'm committed to improving this legislation to make sure we balance security with the needs of Texas employers," Cornyn said.
Hutchison said she rejects arguments that the millions of illegal immigrants can't be made to leave the country. "I think we can," she said.
J. Carnes, president of Winter Garden Produce in Uvalde, Texas, said the state already is seeing labor shortages. With the state's thriving economy, he said he has about half the workers in fields than he had in previous years and the number will continue to dwindle without reform.
"It's not just immigrants who benefit from work," he said. "If you have a farmer and rancher who employs immigrant labor all the businesses who supply that ranch or farm benefit from having those immigration workers," Hammond said.
The senators have previously found themselves in a dilemma with immigration legislation. Both voted for a bill mandating 700 miles of fence on the border, including some in Texas.
As government officials have begun contacting land owners about possible use of their land for the fence, those land owners, local officials and business leaders have protested, questioning its effect on their economy and binational way of life.
The senators responded to the protests late Wednesday with an amendment to the immigration bill that would mandate Homeland Security Department cooperation with local officials on the fence. The amendment, passed on a voice vote, was sponsored by Hutchison and co-sponsored by Cornyn.
I've got news for these protestors. We don't want a binational way of life! One nation under God, remember?
I am a Texas resident too. I was interested in this list. If the one posted before your post is accurate, is is a bunch of “eye wash”. Take out all the Associations, Chambers of Commerce, Institutes, etc and you cut it down to half size. I recognize several “liberal” names on the rest.
The best some of these can promise (threaten??) is to try to INFLUENCE voters. Most on the list would vote Democrat anyway.
I think posting a list of about 80 REAL VOTERS saying the opposite would counter it quite nicely! This is being done in calls, emails, and faxes to the good Senators right now. I think this is a propaganda piece or a smokescreen.
Recall the fallout over that and Ronnie Earle, the Travis County DA?
Its a small world. Those evil Texas Businessmen who put the GOP in control of the Texas Legislature are now those evil Texas Businessmen supporting immigration reform.
They get rich off their cheap labor while the taxpayer gets screwed.
Pushing the issue of re-districting doesn't give them an automatic pass on pushing amnesty legislation for illegals for their own economic gain.
I know we’ve been doing alot of emailing and calling lately........We also need to write the ‘Fox News Channel’ this weekend and fill up their boxes explaining we need coverage on the Senate Amnesty Bill...This week was pathetic...
Fox needs to do this in two ways.
1. Interview ppl that are part of the sessions.
2. And give explanations of what the current bill does in an honest way............
I wonder how many votes that translates into.
In his prior life, Mr. Bill Hammond would have made a great southern cotton grower. King cotton and slavecheap labor, yes sir, a real fine man Mr. Hammond. SAC off
When there is a shortage of product produced by farmers, oil companies, or any other business, their first move is to raise prices. However, when there is a shortage of labor, they seldom consider solving the problem by raising the price paid for that commodity. I fail to see how any business should be guaranteed an unlimited supply of cheap labor.
Well, we can boyott every business that hires illegals. I’m not above going into a restaurant or hotel, etc. and asking if all of their workers are documented.
Sanderson Farms is a chicken company too, just not as big as Tyson or Pilgrim’s Pride. Guess chicken is off my list too. Good thing I like veggies.
“Hell, we need them wetbacks, boy! Ain’t no white man gonna work for $4 an hour!”
It looks like their server melted down due to a whole lot of Texans checking out who is selling us down the river on amnesty. Keep the pressure on.
I’m wondering if the hired help at Crawford Ranch is legal. Any McLennan County Texans on the ping list?
I got an e-mail from Cornyn, asking for support for his re-election. I told him, and the RNC - no money until amnesty is defeated.
I don’t care much for chicken. I don’t buy anything from Tyson because of ties to the toons. Bo Pilgrim and his huge mansion in Pittsburg has been known for years as having LOTS of illegals working in his plants.
I won’t buy Tyson either for the very same reason!
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