Thread: Bush giving 'guest workers' another shot

Bush giving 'guest workers' another shot



By David Jackson, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — President Bush visits the Arizona-Mexico border Monday as aides try to persuade skeptical congressional Republicans to support an immigration bill to allow temporary "guest workers."
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez are heading negotiations that currently focus on Senate Republicans, White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said.

Stanzel declined to detail the talks. He said that during today's trip to Yuma, Ariz., Bush "will discuss his commitment to working with members to get legislation to his desk this year."

Don Stewart, a spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said one item under discussion is a "touchback" provision. It would require illegal immigrants to return to their countries of origin at least briefly and pay a "hefty fine" before being able to return to the USA under any guest-worker program.

News reports of fines as high as $10,000 helped trigger protests Saturday in Los Angeles. Marchers carried signs saying "Amnesty Now!" and "Love Thy Neighbor, Don't Deport Him."



Bush visited Yuma last May 18, three days after delivering a nationally televised address on immigration. The administration proposed what it called "comprehensive immigration reform," combining tighter border enforcement with a temporary guest-worker plan to address illegal immigrants already in the USA without forcing them to first leave the country.

Congress was under Republican control at the time. The Senate passed a bipartisan bill backed by Bush that would have allowed illegal immigrants to remain in the USA and apply for citizenship, as along as they were working and learning English. The House supported a version that called for tighter border control. Republicans such as Rep. Brian Bilbray of California likened guest-worker programs to amnesty for lawbreakers.

Now that Democrats have taken control of Congress, the White House is trying again. The administration is trying to unite Republicans behind a revised proposal.

On Sunday, Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., who last year supported the Senate bill backed by Bush, said comprehensive reform "is possible only with strong Republican support. Only a bipartisan bill will actually become law."

During a trip to Mexico last month, Bush said he opposes amnesty and automatic citizenship, but simply "kicking people out of the United States" is not a "realistic solution." He said, "There's got to be a middle ground, a reasonable way" to deal with the 12 million illegal immigrants who are already in the country and working.

Kurt Bardella, a spokesman for Bilbray, chairman of the Congressional Immigration Reform Caucus, said Bush may have similar troubles with congressional Republicans this time around. Bardella called the "touchback" idea nothing more than "window dressing."

"For every overture they make to the right, they lose support on the left, and vice-versa," he said. "There are a lot of competing interests."

Contributing: The Associated Press

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington ... .htm?csp=1

No "fines" are high enough to cover the TRILLIONS OF AMERICAN TAX DOLLARS that we will have to fork over to take care of these people and their familes.........extended families.........pregnancies & anchor babies!!

It is time to begin passing these figures over to Congress, both Dems and Repubs.

RECTOR'S REPORT #1
http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=F ... ic&t=59441

Stop the flood of poor coming from Mexico and So. America and if we need workers after this illegal mess is fixed, then and only then allow people who can take care of them selves with out the taxpayers money to servive and with out their whole extended families and with health and criminal checks.

Why will nobody speak of attrition through enforcement??

Until the perversion of 'our' 14th amendment is stopped forever any guest worker program is just another corrupt opportunity to pack millions more cheap labor, anchor baby making pretend migrants into the US.