FAIR update

[MW]

"New Guest Worker Amnesty Legislation on the Way!

Legislative leaders now say that immigration has moved up to the top of legislative priorities for the new 110th Congress. And to show their support for "immigration reform," the New York Times reports that lawmakers began drafting new guest worker amnesty legislation as early as mid-December. Those working on the bill include Senators Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and John McCain (R-AZ), along with Representatives Jeff Flake (R-AZ) and Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL). According to Congress Daily, numerous special interest groups are also participating in the drafting, including the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Council of La Raza, and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

The legislation is reportedly to be based largely on S.2611, the Senate guest worker amnesty legislation passed last year. However, sources say that lawmakers are now considering offering illegal aliens a more direct path towards citizenship than before. This might be accomplished by either eliminating the tiered eligibility requirements found in S.2611 or by relaxing the requirements all classes of illegal aliens. In addition, there are reports that the border fencing will be de-funded and that even the employment verification provisions of S.2611 will be watered down to appease big business and other special interest groups lobbying for amnesty.

The New York Times reports that this new immigration legislation may be introduced as early as this month. Amnesty supporters are working quickly, knowing that the closer a public debate on guest worker amnesty comes to the 2008 Presidential election, the less likely it is to pass. Be sure to call your Representatives and Senators to let them know you oppose all guest worker amnesty legislation!


Dumb As A Box of Rocks?

Despite its reputation of being a traditional Republican ally, the United States Chamber of Commerce has shown that it is willing to work with either party in order to accomplish its agenda with respect to one particular issue-mass immigration. According to Congressional Quarterly, the Chamber of Commerce is one of the key organizations helping Congressional leaders draft the new guest worker amnesty legislation. Through a relaxation of eligibility requirements and enforcement provisions, this bill is expected to be even bigger and broader than S.2611, the Senate guest worker amnesty legislation that passed last spring.

The Chamber of Commerce, which represents more that 3 million businesses, has long supported guest worker amnesty bills such as S.2611. Chamber President Thomas J. Donahue has called immigrant labor "our best hope to curb chronic American labor shortages" and said that the Chamber would continue to push for guest worker programs in order to "find needed workers in the face of changing demographics". In response to critics who argue that guest worker programs take jobs from American workers and depress wages, Donahue claims that a guest worker program will not only strengthen the economy but will also "strengthen national security". In fact, Donahue accused those opposed to a guest worker program" of being as "dumb as a box of rocks."

Inspector General Report Concludes Homeland Security Cannot Handle Current Immigration Load

Late December, Homeland Security Inspector General Richard L. Skinner released a report concluding that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the troubled, $2-billion-a-year agency, is unable to effectively manage its workload, much less a flood of new applications. In his report, Inspector General Skinner cites a long list of setbacks to USCIS and concurs with USCIS internal reviews that the bureau "lacks the processing capacity, systems integration and project management resources needed to manage a potential increase in workloads."

As reported in the Washington Post, immigration officials have said for years that it is critical to update its antiquated, paper-based application process before the government considers granting amnesty to at least 12 million illegal aliens or before creating new guest worker programs. Many legal immigrants are already faced with years-long waits when they apply for green cards, often a first step toward obtaining citizenship. Even now, 100,000 names submitted to the FBI for background checks have been on hold for a year or more. Moreover, congressional auditors recently reported serious flaws existed in the bureau's record-keeping system-flaws that surfaced when it was discovered that 14 immigration offices had lost track of 111,000 files last year.

Nevertheless, President Bush continues to reiterate his support to pass guest worker amnesty legislation for the 12 million illegal aliens now living in the United States. He states he will be working with Congressional leaders who also see the need to "reform" the nation's immigration laws in order to get guest worker amnesty legislation passed.

Totalization Agreement Allows Social Security to go to Illegal Alien Workers

TREA Senior Citizens League announced last week that after numerous refusals over three and a half years, the Social Security Administration finally released the first known public copy of the U.S.-Mexico Social Security Totalization Agreement. The Social Security Administration was forced to make the disclosure in response to lawsuits filed under the Freedom of Information Act by the League, a nonpartisan seniors' advocacy group. The agreement between the United States and Mexico was signed in June 2004, and awaits President Bush's signature. If signed by President Bush, the Social Security Agreement Totalization agreement will automatically go into effect after 60 days unless either House of Congress votes to reject it.

The U.S.-Mexico Totalization agreement has become controversial because it could allow millions of illegal aliens from Mexico to draw billions of dollars from the U.S. Social Security Trust Fund, creating huge new pressures on the Social Security program itself. Currently, federal law does not bar wages submitted for illegal work from counting towards social security benefits. Thus, if an illegal alien worker in the United States today gets a "work authorized" Social Security number through the Totalization Agreement, that worker would be able claim credit for work performed legally or illegally. The same would happen if Congress adopts a guest worker program to legalize the millions of illegal aliens currently in the country.

According to TREA, the Social Security Administration expects the Social Security Trust Fund to pay out more than it accrues by year 2017 and to be exhausted by 2040. "The Social Security Administration itself warns that Social Security is within decades of bankruptcy--yet, they seem to have no problem making agreements that hasten its demise," said the Chairman of the Senior Citizens League, Ralph McCutchen.

Senators Ensign (R-NW), Inhofe (R-OK), Sessions (R-AL), and Thomas (R-WY) have introduced legislation (S. 43) that will change current law to treat all Totalization Agreements as bilateral trade agreements. This means both houses of Congress would be required to pass a resolution approving a Totalization Agreement before it could into effect, instead of the agreement automatically going into effect unless either house of Congress passes a resolution rejecting it. If passed before the U.S.-Mexico Totalization Agreement is signed and goes into effect, this legislation would also require the U.S.-Mexico Totalization to be approved by both the House and Senate. FAIR strongly supports this legislation.

Recent Floor Statements
" Rep. David Dreier (R-CA) commented on Immigration Enforcement And Social Security Protection Act (January 5, 2007)
" Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-CA) commented on Introduction Of Illegal Immigration And Identity Theft Legislation (January 5, 2007)
" Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) commented on The 110th Congress (January 4, 2007)
" Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) commented on A New Congress (January 4, 2007)
" Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL) commented on A New Direction For America (January 4, 2007)

Press Release:
" Schwarzenegger's Proposal to Insure Illegal Aliens Opens Californians to Billions in Additional Costs (January 4, 2006)