Thread: GOP lawmakers rap plan to recruit migrant workers

GOP lawmakers rap plan to recruit migrant workers
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/n ... 58,00.html
Print By April M. Washington, Rocky Mountain News
August 24, 2007

Republican lawmakers today assailed a bipartisan proposal to open a recruitment office in Mexico to attract seasonal workers, saying it risks making Colorado a magnet for illegal immigrants.
"This is sending the wrong message," said Republican Sen. Greg Brophy, a farmer from the Eastern Plains. "We need to be more creative than just opening up a state-sponsored employment office in Juarez. That's throwing in the towel and saying, 'Come on in.'"

Rep. Marsha Looper, R-Calhan, and Sen. Abel Tapia, D-Pueblo, are floating a plan to recruit seasonal legal workers in Mexico to help Colorado farmers who are struggling to find help to bring in crops. The legislators initially called it a "guest worker" program, but only the federal government can grant visas to foreign workers. The proposal is intended only to help expedite that process, not create a new one, as some critics have said.

The plan is preliminary, and talks have just gotten under way about introducing legislation in January.

Senate Republicans called the proposal an attempt by the Democrats to backslide from recent legislative efforts to stem the flow of illegal immigrants.

"Unless the state is prepared to spend tens of millions of dollars to keep tabs on guest workers to make sure they don't overstay their visas, then this is a bad idea," said Sen. Josh Penry, R-Fruita.

In truth, the proposal came from a Republican.

Looper, a GOP House freshman, approached Tapia about co-sponsoring a bill.

Looper could not be reached for comment Friday, but said earlier she urged her GOP colleagues to put aside partisan politics and do what's best for Colorado's agricultural market.

Looper has been pressured this week by fellow Republicans to back away from the proposal.

Rep. Frank McNulty, R-Highlands Ranch, credited Looper for thinking outside the box, but argues that state-sponsored recruitment of migrant workers would only foster illegal immigration and further weaken attempts to secure the U.S's southern border.

"This goes a step too far," he said. "Sometimes you got to beat people back into the box. She has some high hurdles to get through before she gets to the border."

Tapia defended the measure Friday as a creative and sound idea. He said neither he nor Looper is trying to lure undocumented workers or create a pathway to citizenship.

Tapia and Looper have said that the state's crackdown on illegal immigration has caused migrant workers to bypass Colorado, leaving farmers short-handed.

"We only want to expedite the current system," Tapia said.

Looper and Tapia are hoping an office in Mexico can help Colorado farmers draw migrant workers through an existing federal visa program called "H-2A."

That program has no cap on visa numbers, as some other visas do. However, employers must first find the specific foreign employees they want to hire, then have them approved by the U.S. Department of Labor.

The state of Colorado and employers would also have to provide housing and transportation for migrant workers.

washingtonam@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5086

LOL......why go to Mexico to recruit? They're already here. Sures heck don't need MORE.