Thread: FAIR Call Congressional Leaders End Chain Migration

From: Federation for American Immigration Reform
Date: 2007/05/11 Fri AM 10:40:03 EST
Subject: CALL Congressional Leaders Today - Tell Them to End Chain Migration!

Call Congressional Leaders and Tell Them to End Chain Migration!

For weeks now, a group of about ten Senators, led by Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ), has been negotiating behind closed doors with the White House to create a new guest worker amnesty plan—one they hope will generate more support in the Senate. While FAIR is adamantly opposed to the guest worker amnesty plans being drawn up, Senator Kyl has proposed one crucial reform that could change the very nature of our nation's immigration system: ending chain migration.

Chain migration is the result of the current formula for awarding green cards, which grants preferences to applicants who establish that they have some sort of extended family in the United States. By granting green card preferences to extended family members, immigrants who enter the U.S. bring in their extended family members, who in turn bring in more extended family members. This phenomenon—called chain migration—has led to skyrocketing immigration, exponential growth in U.S. population, and overcrowding in our cities. In fact, the United States admits about 1.2 million legal permanent residents each year—equivalent to a city the size of Dallas! Immigration at this level cannot possibly be sustained.

Granting extended family preferences has been criticized for years by Democrats and Republicans alike as a wholly irrational method of awarding green cards. In 1990 U.S. Commission on Immigration Reform chaired by Rep Barbara Jordan (D-TX) recommended eliminating extended family based immigration categories and urged a reduction in immigration numbers overall. Seventeen years later, that bipartisan conclusion was never enacted and our current immigration policy is in shambles as a result of years of quick fixes, special interests and short term thinking. If Members of Congress are serious about reform and bipartisan agreement, it is clear that eliminating extended family preference categories is a critical component of any true immigration reform bill.

Ending chain migration through the elimination of extended family preference categories would:

Help control illegal immigration;
Return control of immigration policy to the American people;
Restore immigration as a tool of U.S. policy interests;
Help overall immigration become more consistent with our goal of U.S. population stabilization.
Unless Congress acts soon, the problem of chain migration will only get worse. Yet, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senator Ted Kennedy, encouraged by far-left amnesty advocates, prefer to keep the current, broken system intact and open the borders to illegal aliens, hundreds of thousands of low-skilled workers, and their extended family members. They and others in Senate Leadership are now backing away from any discussions to end chain migration.

Decisions are being made in Congress at this very moment! Please call the following list of Senate leaders and let them know that ending chain migration is vital to our national interests.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) - (202) 224-3542
Senate Majority White Dick Durbin (D-IL) - (202) 224-2152
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) - (202) 224-2541
Senate Minority White Senator Lott (R-MS) - (202) 224-6253
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) - (202) 224-4242
Senate Judiciary Ranking Member Arlen Specter (R-PA) - (202) 224-4254
Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Chairman Ted Kennedy (D-MA) - (202) 224-4543


House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) - (202) 225-4965
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) - (202) 225-4131
House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) - (202) 225-3315
House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) - (202) 225-6205
House Minority Whip Roy Blunt (R-MO) - (202) 225-6536