http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hea ... 88056.html

Aug. 1, 2006, 9:56PM

Hutchison border plan 'intriguing'
Commerce head says her idea could bring compromise
By PATTY REINERT
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON - Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said Tuesday that Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's immigration plan is "an intriguing proposal" that could be a starting point for a compromise between lawmakers trying to secure the border and those trying to create a guest worker program.

Solving the country's immigration problems, Gutierrez said, will require doing both.

In a speech at the libertarian Cato Institute, Gutierrez — who became an American after fleeing Cuba with his parents at age 6 — said he is encouraged that there appears to be some consensus forming on immigration, even though the House and Senate have passed vastly different bills that need to be reconciled.

He said that more than 500 top economists, including five Nobel Laureates, have written letters to President Bush and Congress saying immigration has been a "net gain" for American citizens. Two-thirds of U.S. voters, Gutierrez added, now say they support legislation that includes a temporary worker program or a path to citizenship, rather than an enforcement-only plan such as the one favored by House Republicans.

Hutchison's plan, which she and Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., announced last week, contains some elements of the Senate bill, including "earned citizenship" for illegal immigrants already in the country and a guest worker program to allow more to enter the United States. But Hutchison and Pence suggest delaying the guest worker plan until new border enforcement measures, including fences and increased border patrols, have been in place for two years.

Critics of the Hutchison-Pence plan say it is unrealistic because it would require illegal immigrants to return home before applying for the guest worker program, and would take them at least 17 years before they could apply for U.S. citizenship.

But Gutierrez, who met with Hutchison and Pence to discuss their ideas, praised their proposal for providing "strong border security, while also recognizing our economy's need for temporary workers."

"Obviously, there are many details to be worked out," he said. "They both believe their proposal is a starting point. We encourage the House and Senate to continue talking, and to continue this rational approach to finding solutions."

patty.reinert@chron.com