IMMIGRATION REFORM CAUCUS CHAIR REACTS TO FLAKE-GUTIERREZ “
IMMIGRATION REFORM CAUCUS CHAIR
REACTS TO FLAKE-GUTIERREZ “AMNESTY” PROPOSAL
(Washington D.C.)- Congressman Brian Bilbray (R-CA), Chairman of the Immigration Reform Caucus, issued the following statement today following the unveiling of an illegal immigration proposal introduced by Congressmen Flake and Gutierrez:
“Unfortunately, the proposals introduced by Congressmen Flake and Gutierrez amount to nothing more than repeating the failed policies of the past. This bill sends the message that the 12 million illegal immigrants who are currently living in our country were justified in breaking our immigration laws.
“Proponents of this bill say that illegal immigrants will have to wait, pay a monetary fine and “learn” English. That’s the same thing Congress said in 1986 when they passed an amnesty bill with the promise of securing the border and enforcing the law. Twenty-one years later, that promise has been broken and the problem has multiplied. The interior enforcement provisions of the ’86 amnesty were never implemented.
“Under the Flake-Gutierrez bill, employer verification would have to be certified by the Department of Homeland Security before the “guest-worker” provisions can be enacted. The same department that has failed to implement the REAL ID Act and the U.S. VISIT program.
“Employer enforcement must be more than a benchmark; it needs to be the centerpiece of our effort to address illegal immigration. The opportunity for employment is the driving force behind illegal immigration. The problem may be coming from the border, but it manifests itself beyond the border and in our communities.
“The starting point for addressing illegal immigration should be something we all agree is a problem – which is illegal employment. We have a consensus so why don’t we work to address the things we do agree on first?
“This bill will lead to another new wave of illegal immigration that will far exceed the effects of the ’86 Amnesty and we will be right back where we started with an even larger illegal immigrant population.”
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http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/ca ... 42007.html
For Immediate Release
March 24, 2007
Contact: Kurt Bardella
(202) 225-5452