Thread: FAIR Legislative Update 10-16-06

From: Federation for American Immigration Reform <info@fairus.org> Add to Address Book
Date: 2006/10/16 Mon PM 02:12:38 EDT
Subject: FAIR Legislative Update 10-16-2006

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October 16, 2006


In this update:
Bush Will Sign Secure Fence Act
Department of Homeland Security Holding Secure Drivers Licenses Hostage?
Members of Congress Express Concern Over Charges Against Border Patrol Agents
New Poll Shows Immigration as a Key Issue in Contested Races
U.S. Population Will Reach 300 Million This Week
Bush Will Sign Secure Fence Act
President Bush has pledged to sign the Secure Fence Act that authorizes the construction of about 700 miles of fencing along the southern border. Groups supporting amnesty are urging the President to veto the bill. The White House has not received the legislation from Congress therefore postponing the act from becoming law. Bush's support for the Secure Fence Act was praised by House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) who says illegal immigration is a threat to our safety. Reports indicate the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) would not commit to building all 700 miles of fencing; however, House Armed Services Chairman Duncan Hunter (R-CA) sent a letter to DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff explaining the building of the fence is not optional. Stay tuned.

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Department of Homeland Security Holding Secure Drivers Licenses Hostage?
A recent report by a coalition of state governors and state legislative groups confirms that states have received no guidelines from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on implementing the REAL ID Act of 2005. This legislation-passed over a year ago- mandates that by 2008 states will be issuing drivers licenses that are tamper-resistant, encrypted with certain data and machine readable. Security standards will also be required to ensure a person's identity is authenticated. The Department of Homeland Security was charged with setting up the guidelines for states such as the type of technology to use. Without these guidelines, states cannot solicit bids to produce the licenses, cannot install new equipment, cannot train employees or run trials on the new documents. DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff testified before Congress in September that the agency is working on the project, but offered nothing on when the guidelines will be finalized.
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Members of Congress Express Concern Over Charges Against Border Patrol Agents
Congressman Walter Jones was joined by other Members of Congress in a letter to U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales last week expressing their concern over charges against Border Patrol agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean. Agents Ramos and Compean were convicted for firing shots at a fleeing drug smuggler earlier this summer. The letter from the Members of Congress stated the agents were convicted of violating a law that makes it a crime to carry or use a firearm during commission of a violent or drug trafficking crime. A press release from the office of Congressman Walter Jones states that the letter is urging the Attorney General to take action to either delay sentencing or have the charges against the agents dropped. "This statute has historically been used in violent crime and drug trafficking cases. It has also been applied to law enforcement when necessary; however, based on past applications to law enforcement, it appears that its application in the present case is unwarranted."

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New Poll Shows Immigration as a Key Issue in Contested Races
A new poll finds intense concern over immigration in several tight congressional races. Some of these tough races include races in Missouri, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Ohio. Of likely voters nationally, 53 percent said that immigration was either their most important issue or one of their top three issues. When asked about voting for candidates that would increase immigration, 70 percent said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate who wanted to double legal immigration. The Senate guest worker amnesty passed in May would more than double legal immigration into the U.S. Forty-four percent of those questioned want enforcement that causes illegal aliens to go home with 20 percent favoring large-scale deportations and 31 percent supporting amnesty for illegal aliens. Also, three out of four voters in the nation agreed that illegal immigration is caused by "grossly inadequate" enforcement efforts, not because of overly restrictive legal immigration policies.
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U.S. Population Will Reach 300 Million This Week
Population in the United States will reach the 300 million mark this week while future projections put the United States at the half-billion mark by 2050. Eighty percent of the nation's population growth is due to immigration. If the Senate's guest worker amnesty were implemented, the country could reach a billion people by the end of this century.
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