Free Republic

The new Homeland Security secretary says an earned path to citizenship for the roughly 11 million immigrants living in the United States illegally is a matter of national security. It was the first time Jeh Johnson, who had little experience with immigration policy before he was appointed, had outlined his approach on the subject. The Defense Department’s former top lawyer, who worked on U.S. drone policies and helped end the Pentagon’s ban on gays in the military, said offering a path to citizenship would encourage such immigrants “to come out of the shadow, to be accountable, to participate in the...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist strongly defended on Sunday the path to citizenship for illegal immigrants offered in the Senate's immigration reform bill, citing national security concerns. Speaking on Fox News Sunday, the Tennessee Republican said a failure to hold out the hope of citizenship to people living illegally in the United States would encourage the estimated 12 million illegal aliens to "stay in the shadows." "The reality is you can't just take 12 million people here, millions of whom are fully assimilated into our society ... and send them back" to their countries of origin,...

Interview with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on ABC This Week with George Stephanopoulos, April 23, 2006 Transcript below. Video available at ABC website: STEPHANOPOULOS: (intro): Our next guest California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. He marked Earth Day this weekend with a beach clean up in San Pedro, a day after meeting up with President Bush in San Jose. As they both try to recover from record low approval ratings, Schwarzenegger and Bush are locked in an uneasy embrace. When I sat down with the Governor in Sacramento before his summit with the president, it was clear that Schwarzenegger thinks the key to...

Americans need to have a national discussion about immigration issues, but first they have to refine their vocabulary on the topic, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said Thursday in Scottsdale. “I’ve seen kind of an ugly side to this debate,” he told about 300 people at the Mayor and City Council Breakfast meeting. In particular, McCain is troubled by the use of the terms “illegal alien” and “amnesty.” “Illegal alien” suggests that the 11 million to 12 million border crossers in the United States came from another planet, he said. He prefers the term “illegal immigrant.” “These are human beings, who...

Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska once again will wade into the political minefield of immigration reform, planning to introduce legislation that would allow immigrants here illegally to work their way to legal status. The plan Hagel is expected to introduce Tuesday also will include stronger controls at the border to stem the flow of undocumented workers into the United States. Sen. Chuck Hagel The Republican said Saturday there are about 10 million illegal immigrants here now who are an integral part of the nation's economy. Any immigration proposal must recognize and provide a way for them to earn legal status....