Thread: Dems‘ immigration bill face obstacles

Dems‘ immigration bill face obstacles
Staff and agencies
24 March, 2007

By SUZANNE GAMBOA

WASHINGTON - Democrats may have support from President Bush on immigration, but they face other obstacles in getting a bill through Congress.

The difficulty of their predicament is showing.

"We need to get a bill , , ), D-Nev.

Originally, Sens. Edw, , ), R-Ariz., pl, , ), D-Ill. , , ), R-Ariz.

In response, McCain broke with Kennedy and said he is looking at proposals that could pass, including one requiring illegal immigrants to self deport and apply for jobs in the U.S. through private employment centers set up in certain countries.

Gutierrez and Flake have gone forward with the bill they began drafting with Kennedy and McCain, and have made it the starting point for debate in the House.

Even so, "there aren‘t enough Democrats in the House to pass comprehensive immigration reform. There aren‘t enough senators, Democratic senators ... to pass it," Gutierrez said.

Among them was Rep. Nick Lampson, D-Texas, who won the conservative Republican district once held by former Majority Leader Tom DeLay .

During his recent visit to Mexico, Bush pledged to intensify his push for a comprehensive immigration bill. He said he would work to reject "protectionist sentiments" that are bogging down the debate, and named Kennedy as his key ally in the effort.

He dispatched Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff , Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez , , ), R-Ariz, , , ), R-Texas. Both voted , , ) of Pennsylvania.

Four of the 12 committee members who voted for th, , ) of Kansas.

Democrats also are facing opposition from unions. Many AFL-CIO member unions and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters are concerned that employers will choose to hire foreigners over more expensive American workers.

They want limits on work visas for foreigners, but also full labor protections that would let them join unions.

"The ideal immigration reform bill would not contain a guest worker program," said Yvette Pena Lopes, a Teamsters lobbyist. If one is created, the Teamsters and other unions want it to expire in three to five years, Lopes said.

Immigration bill sponsors say allowing workers to become legal permanent residents after several years of work will help protect them from exploitation by employers.

The bill is HR1645.

http://www.localnewsleader.com/elytimes ... s&id=84600

The Democrats or the Republicans, The difficulty of their predicament is showing all right, the stupidity of the bickering is showing more. I’ve spent some time in the past few weeks watching c-span and some other cable shows, I must say the true colors of both parties in public are worse then first graders .We elected these people to get the job done, not make a joke or a game out of each others party. I’m so sticking mad I want to spit.
If theses people act like this on the TV, I can just imagine what they act like behind closed doors.

No one elected person gives two shake of a cat’s dinger what will happen to the troops or the Immigration policies, the country can site by a another 6 weeks and wait for some one to talk about what they want to do, and then yield them five more minutes to listen to the same darn thing over and over again.
If Bush has any hopes of getting our country out of this mess in one piece, he needs to fire all of the republican representatives and half the democratic representatives press charges on the other half. A few of them need taken out behind the wood shed and switched. Let the people of this great county vote on the needs at hand.

We the people are not being heard.