Thread: Craig Bushon discusses the 'SECRET' House Gang of Eight

Craig Bushon discusses the 'SECRET' House Gang of Eight

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KF4pq...ature=youtu.be

Published on Jun 5, 2013
Craig Bushon ask today on the show? Did you know there was a SECRET House Gang of Eight that has been meeting in secret for almost 4 years? You really need to watch this video and learn what you haven't been told.

To read the entire article go to http://www.befirstinmedia.com/secret-...

‘Secret’ meetings give new start to immigration reform in Washington (No Transparency Here)

The Be First in Media Staff has added additional information to this Austin Statesman article originally posted: 1:00 p.m. Friday, May 31, 2013 By Cristina Peña . In hopes of bringing better clarity on this very important issue.

U.S. Rep. John Carter drafts bill with House’s ‘Gang of 8’ in Secret

After almost four years of closed-door immigration reform meetings, the secret is out.

U.S. Rep. John Carter (R-Texas) announced at the monthly Greater Leander Chamber of Commerce luncheon Tuesday that he banded together with seven other house members, including Sam Johnson (R-Texas), to draft a bipartisan immigration reform bill.

The group — which he said met secretly for three-and-a-half years — hopes their legislation will rival the Senate’s immigration bill. Carter said a bipartisan bill is essential in the case of immigration because it must pass through the Republican-controlled House of Representatives and the Democrat-controlled Senate in order to make it to the oval office.

Along with Carter and Johnson, the group, which has been dubbed the “House Gang of Eight,” consists of Republican Representatives Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Florida) and Raul Labrador (R-Idaho) and Democratic Representatives Zoe Lofgren (D-California), Xavier Becerra (D-California), John Yarmuth (D-Kentucky) and Luis Gutierrez (D-Illinois).

Esther Reyes | Women and Girls Lead from KLRU-TV on Vimeo.

Austin Immigrant Rights Coalition Director Esther Reyes saw Carter speak at an event in San Antonio earlier this month. While she said the contents of the bill are not revealed, the AIRC is encouraged by the fact that Carter is working with a leading immigration advocate, Rep. Gutierrez.

“We are very hopeful that there are several representatives that could really work together to help,” Reyes said. “It’s a huge encouragement that [Rep. Carter] is part of that group.”

The economic hardship on the country is one of the reasons Carter said he chose to tackle an immigration reform bill. He said contrary to popular belief in Texas, 40 percent of undocumented immigrants come to the country with a valid visa and never leave, rather than crossing the borders illegally. Undocumented immigrants do not pay taxes, but still participate in public education and use utilities and roads.

“Economically our system we have today is broken and it’s costing us a lot of money,” Carter said. “Hopefully if we do it right we won’t have as many of those expenses in the future.”
Carter, a former Williamson County judge, said he believes the United States is a nation of laws, and not of people, and he plans to enforce the laws while treating undocumented immigrants with dignity and compassion.

“I believe the rule of law is the glue that holds our society together,” Carter said. “When we start excusing one law we chip away at the glue.”

Carter’s voting record regarding immigration has always taken a conservative note. Most recently he voted down The DREAM Act, which would have given undocumented children who were brought to the United States a pathway to citizenship through military service or higher education.

Carter said he made it clear at the beginning of the group’s discussion that he wanted the legal pathway to be more accessible, but immigrants needed to earn their citizenship by learning English and taking civics courses.

“I went in and said, ‘I’m not an amnesty guy, I’m not giving automatic citizenship,’” Carter said. “You have to earn American citizenship.”

The current path to becoming an American citizen involves knowledge of U.S. history and passing a test entirely in English. Reyes, who became a citizen five years ago, said Carter is not out of line to require civics and language courses for immigrants.

“Our group isn’t against learning English, which is what a lot of people assume,” Reyes said. “For us that’s what we want — to be integrated entirely.”

The House bill would make citizenship accessible in 14 years while the Senate bill would take 10 years.

At Tuesday’s luncheon, Steve Tatro interjected at the end of Rep. Carter’s speech, saying he should not be proud of meeting in private. Instead, Tatro said Carter should take smaller steps toward immigration reform like taking control of the borders.
Carter defended himself by saying the only way a bill could pass would be if congressmen could agree on a solution themselves instead of attempting to please special interest groups.
“If you make it public, everyone has their opinion,” Carter said. “We don’t need the press, we don’t need outside groups to come in and tell us how to do it.”
There were 127 members, not including chamber staff, in attendance for the event, which was the most attended luncheon for the Greater Leander Chamber of Commerce this year, Chamber President Bridget Brandt said. The chamber annually asks Congressman Carter to speak at the luncheon as a “state of the government” visit, and while Brandt said the topic isn’t always controversial, immigration reform just happens to be an issue being addressed in Washington.

“I think it’s important to stay involved about the issues going on in the House and Senate,” Brandt said. “It shows that Leander is interested in politics and what’s happening in the political community.”

Details of the bill could not be revealed because the group is hammering out last-minute details, and there is no official date when the legislation may be introduced to congress, Rep. Carter’s press secretary Sara Talbert Threadgill said.

Reyes said she has high hopes for the immigration bill and will keep a close eye on the House and Senate’s progress with the issue.

“This is a great opportunity for Republicans in Texas to embrace this issue,” Reyes said. “It’s going to be important for both parties in the state and country to support something like this because of the growing population.”

Link to original article http://www.statesman.com/news/news/l...on-refo/nX74G/

Austin Community Newspapers Staff

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