Free Republic

<p>WASHINGTON - Three Arizona lawmakers brought several local community organizers to Capitol Hill on Wednesday to show that widespread grass-roots support exists for their bill to create a nationwide guest-worker program that would include legalizing scores of undocumented immigrants.</p> <p>The groups, mostly representing Hispanic immigrants, hailed from as far away as California and as nearby as the District of Columbia. They included organizations such as the Bangladeshi American Federation here; the Society of Honduran Residents in Oakland.; and the Dallas-based Mexican Professionals Abroad. In Arizona, the Tucson Chamber of Commerce and others have endorsed the bill.</p>

The border state of Arizona recently completed an amnesty that allowed violators to get right with the law. Those who did not take advantage of it will now face extra enforcement officers using new computer systems. But it wasn't for illegal aliens — it was a tax amnesty. It allowed people who hadn't paid their taxes to make arrangements by November 1 to pay up without penalty. The state has collected more than $45 million, with a total of $73 million expected by May, nearly triple what had been predicted. Too bad the state's congressional delegation didn't check with the...

StatementofJames R. Edwards, Jr.Adjunct Fellow, Hudson InstituteAuthor, Center for Immigration Studies Backgrounder, Officers Need Backup: The Role of State and Local Police in Immigration Law Enforcement, April 2003at the hearing of theHouse Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security, and ClaimsonH.R. 2671, the Clear Law Enforcement for Criminal Alien Removal ActOctober 1, 2003Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, thank you for the honor of testifying before this subcommittee. I commend you for holding this important hearing on this outstanding legislation. I approach today’s topic from the perspective of someone who, as legislative director for a former United States Attorney, Rep....

Norwood Introduces CLEAR Act, Legislation to Promote State and Local Law Enforcement of Immigration Law Help Build Support for H.R. 2671 Good news! Immigration Reform Caucus Member Charlie Norwood (R-GA) introduced a bill today that would address the growing criminal and illegal alien problem by allowing over 600,000 state and local law enforcement officials to enforce immigration laws during the course of their regular duties. H.R. 2671 provides state and local law enforcement agencies with the authority and resources needed to detain criminal and illegal aliens. Currently, the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (BICE) has only 2,000 interior enforcement...