Tancredo doubts he can block amnesty-extension bill

Friday, March 08, 2002 - WASHINGTON - Rep. Tom Tancredo takes credit for thwarting the Bush administration's last effort to offer partial amnesty to thousands of illegal residents, but Thursday the outspoken immigration foe said he may have been outmaneuvered by the White House.

President Bush has struck a deal with the House leadership to place legislation that offers an extension of amnesty on its consent calendar before Bush heads to Mexico for a state visit next week, the Colorado Republican said.

That action should ensure quick House passage of legislation that Bush has repeatedly sought from Congress. It would allow an undocumented person to receive legal standing, such as a valid green card, by filing a declaration with the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

It presumably also would require the person to have been in the United States by a certain date and have filed a declaration with the INS from an appropriate sponsor, such as a relative or employer, and pay a $1,000 penalty.

"The terms are still up in the air," said Dan Stein, executive director of the Federation for American Immigration, a group that has been allied with Tancredo. "We've heard to the effect that the president wants something to bring down to Mexico."

The initial Bush proposal, designed exclusively for Mexicans, once was high on the president's legislative wish list, but it was delayed after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. However, as the president noted Wednesday in a speech to the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, he now is pushing for the extension of the amnesty program known by the section of immigration law that covers it, Section 245I.

The president hailed it as a way to reunite family, separated by the border. "If you believe in family values, if you understand the worth of family and the importance of family, let's get 245I out of the United States Congress and give me a chance to sign it," Bush told the chamber members.

Tancredo, the head of a congressional caucus on immigration issues and proponent of halting virtually all immigration, said he had blocked a previous attempt by Bush to push an extension of the amnesty program through the House. But this time, he said House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., had agreed to place the issue on the suspension, or consent, calendar, making it difficult to defeat the proposal.

The Senate might be more favorable to the bill than the House, expanding the numbers of individuals who can apply, Tancredo said.

That is in fact what Bush's buddy Senior Fox is saying, and I haven't heard Bush shoot it down.

This annoys me. Almost everytime I see Bush on TV, it has something to do with the war on terrorism. He is riding that wave of popularity to the fullest.

But yet on this thread, U.S. President George W. Bush on Wednesday denied he was considering legalizing over three million undocumented Mexicans living in the United States, government news agency Notimex reported.

I want Bush to stand up on TV and explain to me why he proposed amnesty, why he pushed 245(i) through the House, and why today he denied he is considering legalizing 3 million undocumented Mexicans. You can't have it both ways. Sorry!!

To paraphrase what this [republican] strategist said, "We know what the public wants on immigration, but we don't care. When it comes time to vote, they won't vote based on the immigration issue but on other issues. So, we are going to do what we want on immigration regardless of what the people want because it won't cost us any votes".

bam, thanks for sharing that info. This guy evidences all the arrogance and over-confidence that is normally present just before things get turned upside down. Reminds me of investors’ attitudes at the peak of a bull market right before a bear market settles in. The Republican Leadership's contempt for their base will be their undoing. I believe there has been a major turning point on the issue of immigration because the problems associated with illegal immigration have become too great for many people to ignore anymore. The RNC and Bush will be in denial about this until they start losing key elections. Maybe then they will start listening. Their old preconceptions are about to get nullified.

This from Numbers USA via American Patrol.

REP. KERNS INTRODUCES "NO AMNESTY" RESOLUTION IN CONGRESS!

This e-mail contains just-breaking information and a request for action.

1. INFORMATION

Representative Brian Kerns (R-IN) today introduced H. CON. RES. 350, a "No Amnesty" resolution in the House of Representatives. This legislation specifically states that "amnesty should not be granted to individuals who are in the United States, or its territories, illegally." It goes on to say that amnesties reward those who break our laws, send a message that the U.S. is not serious about enforcing its laws, and encourage more illegal immigration.

The legislation concludes that "it is the sense of Congress that amnesty should not be granted to individuals who are in the United States, or its territories, illegally." You can read the full text of the resolution online at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d107:h.con.res.00350:

H. CON. RES 350 is much-needed legislation that, if enacted, would send a clear message that the U.S. government will no longer reward with amnesty those who break our immigration laws. It also would send a message to the American people, who oppose amnesty nearly 2 to 1 according to a September 2001 Zogby poll, that their elected Representatives in Washington finally are listening.

Since the ostensible "final" amnesty of 1986, a series of amnesties for illegal aliens have been passed adding millions to the U.S. population and encouraging more illegal immigration. In fact, INS data released in 2000 suggest that in the years following the massive 1986 IRCA amnesty, illegal immigration jumped to about 800,000 annually.

With Census Bureau estimates of 8 million illegal aliens currently living in the U.S., it is clear that amnesty has failed to curb illegal immigration, but instead has only encouraged more.

2. BACKGROUND

Representative Kerns is one of only a handful of Members with an A+ immigration voting record, according to Americans for Better Immigration, the only organization in the country that rates Members of Congress on all of their immigration votes. Representative Kerns has a history of opposing amnesty, most recently having voted against a reinstatement of the Section 245(i) amnesty on March 12. In addition, he has supported an alien tracking and identification system and tougher border enforcement. To view his full voting record go to www.congressgrades.com and click on Indiana in the locator map.

NumbersUSA.com's Executive Director, Roy Beck says, "Representative Kerns offers the kind of leadership that Americans who are tired of illegal immigration and amnesty want in Congress. By introducing this legislation he is speaking out for the American people and standing up for the rule of law."

3. ACTION

It is critically important that your Representative hear from you on this issue. Although most people oppose amnesty, the issue may not be of great importance to your Congressional office until they hear from you. A steady stream of phone calls can raise the issue to one your Representative will act on.

* Call your Representative and ask that he\she cosponsor H. CON. RES 350. You can find the phone number for your Representative by going to http://www.numbersusa.com/contactcongress.html and searching by name.

* Call Representative Kerns' office and thank him for standing up for the American people on this issue. His office number is (202) 225-5805.

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