Thread: Amnesty Bills (new) source: NumbersUSA.com (7-17-07)

Alipac Friends

Source: NumbersUSA.com (as of 7-17-07)

Write and call your elected Congress and Senate represenatives. Amnesty bills in the works!

Three weeks have passed since the Senate heeded the concerns of the American people and stopped debate on the Bush/Kennedy amnesty proposal. Now, as the Senate discusses H.R. 1585, the Defense Department authorization bill for fiscal year 2008, and whether the war in Iraq should be continued, some senators have proposed amendments that keep amnesty for illegal aliens, mandatory workplace verification, importation of foreign workers, and border security in the public policy foreground. At present, however, given the political volatile nature of the Iraq debate and other issues that may arise in the course of floor action, it is unclear whether any of these amendments will be discussed and/or voted on on the Senate floor.

Sen. Durbin (D-Ill.)

Perhaps the most egregious example of an attempt to tack immigration "reform" on to a defense bill comes from Assistant Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-Ill.). In proposing SA 2237 (along with 16 cosponsors), Durbin has offered up the "DREAM Act" as an amendment. The gist of this proposal, which has been offered by Durbin the past few legislative sessions as a stand-alone bill (including this session as S. 774), is that DHS would be authorized to cancel removal for, or adjust to lawful permanent resident status (in other words, grant amnesty to), an alien who is inadmissible or deportable in cases where the alien demonstrates that he:

* has maintained continuous presence in the United States for five years and was not yet 16 years old upon initial entry;
* is of "good moral character" and is not inadmissible or deportable on certain criminal grounds or on the basis of being a risk to national security; and
* has been admitted to an institution of higher education, has attained a high school diploma, or has obtained a GED in the United States.

The DREAM Act also would grant amnesty to illegal aliens who have satisfied these criteria as of enactment.

Another key component of this measure is that, if adopted and subsequently enacted, it would repeal existing statutory provisions denying illegal aliens’ eligibility for in-state tuition unless a U.S. national is similarly eligible without regard to state residence, thus placing the rights of those in our country illegally above those of our own citizens, and, as a result, encouraging even more illegal immigration to the United States.

Sen. Cornyn (R-Texas)

Beyond the nightmare that is the DREAM Act, Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), who bravely spoke out against the Senate's so-called "grand compromise," has proposed two amendments that undermine U.S. workers and, instead, feed Big Business' insatiable hunger for cheap, foreign labor. SA 2143 would allow the "recapturing" of "unused" employment-based (EB) visas from fiscal years 1996 and 1997 (even though visas not allocated in a certain category in any given year are made available for other categories, so there really is no such thing as an "unused" visa). In addition, the amendment would raise the H-1B visa cap from 65,000 per year to 115,000 per year, more than double the number of EB immigrants admissible per year (from 140,000 to 290,000), and would create exemptions from the EB visa cap for: (1) U.S.-educated scientists and engineers; (2) H-1Bs who have been working in science, technology, engineering, or math in the United States for three years preceding their application for an EB immigrant visa; (3) aliens with "extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics"; (4) "outstanding professors and researchers"; and (5) aliens granted "national interest waivers."

A second Cornyn amendment (SA 2141) would establish a new nonimmigrant worker, or "guestworker," program – the H-1A – for "international commuters" (i.e., aliens who live outside the United States, but who commute to and from work in the United States for up to 10 months in any calendar year). If this program were to take effect, up to 90,000 H-1A visas could be issued each year, with those visas being valid for three years.

Another Cornyn amendment, SA 2140, would establish parity between Mexican nationals who possess a valid biometric Border Crossing Card (BCC [also known as a "laser visa"]) who have completed the necessary security checks (a rarity in today's lax enforcement environment) who visit the United States and Canadian "visitors" by allowing BCC bearers to remain in the United States for up to six months. Currently, Mexican nationals with BCCs may only stay in the United States for up to 30 days, while Canadians possessing "tourist" visas may stay up to one year. In addition, SA 2140 would retain DHS' authority to set the length of time those with BCCs may remain in the United States and, also, would authorize that agency to modify the length of admission on a case-by-case basis if good cause exists. Finally, the amendment would make a Mexican national inadmissible for the BCC admission period if: (1) he is inadmissible as a nonimmigrant; (2) he has previously violated his nonimmigrant status; or (3) the BCC was not processed through a machine reader at the U.S. port of entry.

Sen. Grassley (R-Iowa)
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is directly involved with two immigration-related amendment. He is sponsoring SA 2253, which would require all executive departments and agencies – as well as all DoD contractors and subcontractors – to participate in, and comply with the terms of, the Basic Pilot program, beginning 90 days following enactment. Grassley also is cosponsoring a Durbin amendment (SA 223 designed to address the problems of fraud and abuse in the H-1B "high-skill" and L-1 "intracompany transferee/specialized knowledge" nonimmigrant worker programs, as well as protect opportunities for U.S. workers. (This proposal mirrors the Durbin- and Grassley-backed "H-1B and L-1 Visa Fraud and Abuse Prevention Act of 2007"

what is going on here...........

illegal Immigration is part of the North America Union, they are all globalists, they will keep coming back to get their "globaliztion" .

OK again... I can not print what I just said ...I would get the boot....

we are in the same boat ......

We have to be consistent in our message: NO amnesties and expansion of "guest worker" programs -- the focus now must be on securing the border, enforcing existing law, and building all 854 miles of fencing.

We're in this for the long haul. We should expect to continue fighting for every inch until 2008. Only then can we hope to start removing the bad elements of our government. There are a lot of them.

Looks like they are trying to dress-up amnesty. If you were to make up a list of Congressmen considered "keepers" would you have a long list? Or a mighty short one?

Only when the senior Senators are sent home will we have a chance. Seperate parties are a figment of our imagination. Big money flows across the aisles. An important part of this fight must be waged at the voting booths. JMHO

"I am concerned for the security of our great nation, not so much because of any threat from without, but because of the insidous forces within." General Douglas MacArthur

I sent Sen. Cornyn (R-Texas) a nasty letter - again but he never replys whereas Kay Bailey Hutchison will reply.

Here's what I got from Hutchison

Thank you for contacting me regarding current U.S. immigration policy
and its affect on jobs in the high-tech sector. I welcome your thoughts
and comments on this issue.

The H-1B program, established through the Immigration and Nationality
Act, accounts for the majority of skilled individuals admitted to work
temporarily in the United States. The H-1B program allows a U.S. company
to temporarily employ a foreign worker on a nonimmigrant basis in a
specialty occupation. Under current federal law, the annual numerical
limit on the issuance of H-1B visas is 65,000. There is no such limit on
L-1 visas, which is another type of guest worker visa that allows foreign
executives, managers, or specialized skilled workers to be employed in the
United States.

On December 8, 2004, President Bush signed into law H.R. 4818, the
Consolidated Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2005. This Act contains
language which exempts up to 20,000 individuals holding a master's or
higher degree from a U.S. institution of higher education from the annual
cap on H-1B visas. It also requires companies to attest that they have not
displaced qualified American workers, reinstitutes a filing fee for H-1B
petitioners in order to fund job training grants for the employment of U.S.
workers in high growth industries, and imposes a fee on H-1B and L-1
petitioners for use in combating fraud and carrying out labor attestation
enforcement activities.

Last year, the conference report on S. 1932, the Deficit Reduction
Act of 2005, did not include a Senate provision, which I had supported, to
recapture 30,000 H-1B visas unused in prior years. However, S. 2611, the
Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006, introduced by Arlen Specter
on April 7, 2006, would create a new exemption from the H-1B annual
numerical limit for those visa holders who have earned an advanced degree
in science, technology, engineering, or math from an accredited university
in the United States while also increasing the overall numerical cap from
65,000 to 115,000 H-1B visas. I voted against S. 2611 because I believe
that any legislation addressing immigration must first address the safety
and security needs of the United States.

The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006 was passed by the
Senate on May 25, 2006 by a 62 to 36 vote but was not considered by the
House of Representatives prior to the adjournment of the 109th Congress.
Should the legislation be reintroduced in the 110th Congress, you may be
certain I will keep your views in mind

U.S. immigration policy must ensure American workers have every
opportunity to compete for available jobs. In the areas of our economy
where voids of talent and skills exist, we need to invest the resources
necessary to fill those gaps. For example, I believe we need to increase
our country's skills in the areas of math and science, and in 2006 I
cosponsored an amendment to the Departments of Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2006 to
assist in this effort by increasing our funding for Advanced Placement
courses.

I appreciate hearing from you and hope you will not hesitate to keep
in touch on any issue of concern to you.


Sincerely,
Kay Bailey Hutchison