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Candidates support walling off illegals
Corker, Ford agree, sort of, but find differences
By Halimah Abdullah
Contact
October 20, 2006

When it comes to immigration reform, Senate candidates Bob Corker and Harold Ford Jr. seem to strike a similar chord:
Both oppose amnesty for illegal immigrants currently working in the United States. Both agree immigration reform is sorely needed.

But as the two men face off in the tight race, their ideas for stemming the flow of illegal immigrants into this country highlight both their similarities and broader ideological differences.

Republican Corker, who filmed a commercial on Mile 6 of the Arizona-Mexico border, supports building a fence to help deter illegal immigration and immediately deporting undocumented workers.

Democrat Ford supports building a fence on the border's "most porous points" and using the military to help. "My position has always been America should determine who crosses its border," he said last month.

Last year, 1.2 million people were arrested by U.S. Border Patrol agents for illegally crossing into the United States.

According to the Pew Hispanic Center, last year Tennessee's illegal immigrant population was between 100,000 and 150,000. Nationwide, that population has grown by roughly 408,000 every year, reaching more than 11 million this year, according to the U.S. Office of Immigration Statistics.

After a protracted battle between both chambers in Congress over divergent versions of immigration reform bills, the Senate passed legislation last month to build a 700-mile, double-layered fence on the U.S.-Mexico border. The Bush administration also followed through with an earlier pledge and authorized deploying as many as 6,000 National Guard troops to the border, including troops from Tennessee.

During televised debates and in responses to a Commercial Appeal questionnaire, Ford underscored his support for focusing on both illegal immigrants and those who employ them.

"If we determine as a nation that we want to decide who gets in and who does not get in, then we have to have a better immigration policy," Ford said during the Memphis debate. "I think you have to hold employers accountable when they hire illegals. ... If there were no jobs and no opportunities, it is unlikely that people would come across the border."

In similar media forums, Corker supported "an easy and quick" mechanism for employers to verify the legal or illegal status of workers. He said an employer who knowingly hires an illegal immigrant should be punished.

Both candidates have also attacked the other's stance.

"(Corker) is the only candidate for the United States Senate anywhere in the country who hired illegal immigrants, was cited by the Immigration and Naturalization Service and did nothing about it," Ford has said during debates and interviews.

In 1988, authorities discovered four undocumented workers hired by a subcontractor on a Mud Island site run by Corker's construction company. For his part, Corker has said he reported the situation to the Immigration and Naturalization Service and the experience provided him with firsthand experience on the need for immigration reform.

Last month, Corker launched two television commercials that accused Ford of lying about his position on illegal immigration. The Corker campaign cited five "no" votes by Ford on amendments to other bills to use military assistance to help control the U.S. border. The votes spanned 1997 through 1998 and the last two were in 2001 and 2002.

Ford said he didn't recall the votes cited in the Corker ad, but that he has consistently voted to make sure the borders are protected. On a Commercial Appeal questionnaire, Ford said he "voted for the toughest anti-illegal immigration bill in Congress" which included building the fence along the border.

"I opposed President Bush when he wanted to grant amnesty to illegals because I think he's wrong," Ford said during the Memphis debate.