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Friday, August 25, 2006
N.C. field hearing by House to focus on immigration
Conservatives use recess to push their reform bill

By Mary M. Shaffrey
JOURNAL WASHINGTON BUREAU

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WASHINGTON

Republicans are hoping that strict immigration reform will help them in 2006 in the way that the opposition to gay marriage helped them in 2004.

Shortly after the Senate passed a broad immigration-reform package - which was supported by President Bush, most Democrats and a few moderate Republicans - conservative leaders in the House of Representatives announced that instead of forming a conference committee to iron out differences with a previously passed House bill, they would take their show on the road.

Since the August recess began, more than 12 field hearings have been held nationwide on immigration reform. Nearly all of them, however, have had a limited scope, focusing on securing the borders and the effects of illegal immigration on communities. Those are the primary components of the House-passed bill.

Today's hearing in Gastonia - the only field hearing scheduled for North Carolina - will likely be no exception. It will be in the district office of Rep. Sue Myrick, R-9th, at 197 W. Main Ave. It is scheduled to start at 10 a.m.

The hearing's primary focus will be on how some local jurisdictions, such as Mecklenburg County, have the ability to immediately determine if a prisoner is an illegal immigrant because they are connected to a federal database. The sheriff of Mecklenburg County is scheduled to testify.

"The benefits of having a hearing like this is that it is giving policymakers on the federal level an opportunity to talk to law-enforcement officers on the local level" and hear about their daily experiences, said Aaron Latham, the press secretary for Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-10th. Along with Myrick, McHenry requested the hearing in the first place.

In addition to McHenry and Myrick, Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-5th is expected to attend. Rep. Mark Souder, R-Ind., the chairman of the subcommittee on criminal justice, drug policy and human resources, will also be there.

Some observers say they believe that these hearings are nothing more than a "dog and pony show."

Roger Sharpe, a former Democratic state senator who is challenging Foxx in November, said he was disappointed with the limited scope of the hearing.

"You say you are having a hearing and then you invite people to give a certain line, so that's not really a hearing," Sharpe said.

Andy Polk, the press secretary for Myrick, flatly rejected that charge.

"What we are talking about is not proposals, but practical policies (that are already in place). These are not dog and pony shows. Federal lawmakers are hearing what the benefits of these programs are and taking that knowledge back to Washington," Polk said.

• Mary M. Shaffrey can be reached in Washington at 202-662-7672 or at mshaffrey@wsjournal.com.