http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_2793533

Article Launched: 06/12/2005 01:00:00 AM

editorial
Odd cast boosts immigration reform
McCain-Kennedy bill is a solid launching pad for Congress' immigration debate. The subject carries social, economic and security implications.

With an estimated 11 million or more illegal immigrants in the United States, it's clear that existing border policies have become a joke. They too often ignore the labor needs of the economy and, well, where do we begin about the lack of enforcement? The laws against illegal immigration and hiring undocumented workers are poorly enforced, when they are enforced at all.

Past efforts to update U.S. immigration laws have taken years. The task is among the most ticklish and difficult facing Congress, with social and economic ramifications along with diplomatic and domestic security impacts.

Some weeks ago, a serious effort to tackle the immigration headache was launched by Sens. John McCain, a border state Republicans, and Ted Kennedy, a Northeast liberal. This odd duck authorship represents the need to forge a broad consensus. Indeed, McCain-Kennedy is a rational approach that holds much promise if calm heads can prevail over demagoguery.

The McCain-Kennedy bill is in synch with many of President Bush's immigration-reform ideas, which increases the likelihood of success. (Also, the word out of Washington is the president now supports concepts he once opposed, such as not requiring illegal immigrants to return home to gain legal status.)

"It's certainly the most ambitious formulation that we've seen," said Doris Meissner of the Migration Policy Institute in Washington, "and it really does take on the broad sweep of the issues." Meissner, director of the Immigration and Naturalization Service under President Clinton, said McCain- Kennedy will "help focus the discussion. It creates something specific against which to really have a debate" and "probably will go through several iterations" before reaching the Senate floor. She also observed the White House was "amazingly mum about McCain-Kennedy when it was introduced."

In contrast, Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Littleton, gave the

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bill both barrels. He ripped border security provisions as "little more than commissioning of a few more government reports and working groups," and said, "The rest of the bill is dedicated to things like providing taxpayer-funded health care and instant amnesty for millions of illegal aliens who have broken our laws."

True, the bill proposes legitimizing the status of illegal workers currently in the U.S. They would have to pay $2,000 in fines, as well as back taxes, and pass criminal background checks and medical exams. These immigrants could then apply for three-year guest-worker visas, renewable once. After six years, the workers would be eligible to apply for permanent resident status for themselves and their families, and, after five more years, U.S. citizenship.

The bill would allow U.S. employers to hire up to 400,000 foreign workers the first year on a showing that no residents would take the jobs. These workers also eventually could become permanent residents.

Other provisions include electronically verifiable identity cards for the guest workers and doubled fines for employers who knowingly hire newly arrived illegal immigrants.

Despite its bipartisan support, McCain- Kennedy faces an uphill fight on both sides of the aisle: from Republicans opposed to any form of amnesty and from Democrats who fear cheap foreign labor will depress domestic wages.

McCain-Kennedy is a reasonable springboard to debate the many tough issues that are raised by U.S. immigration policy.