http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/31332.html

Domenici outlines ideas on foreign workers

By BARBARA FERRY | The New Mexican
August 16, 2005

A d U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici to the list of lawmakers with ideas about how to resolve the illegal-immigrationquagmire. The New Mexico Republican said Monday that he is considering introducing a plan to reform a system that people on all sides of the political spectrum describe as broken.

Several plans already have been introduced in Congress; Domenici said he is not sure whether he will propose his own legislation or seek to amend one of the existing proposals.

“This is just an idea,� Domenici said during a phone interview . “I’m kicking it around.�

One of the current proposals, favored by some restrictionist groups, would allow undocumented workers to apply for temporary permits from their home country but require them to leave the United Sates after five years when their permits expire. The bill also increases funding for border patrol.

Domenici said there are “a lot of good things� in the plan, proposed by Sens. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz ., and John Cornyn, R-Texas , but he said it was “unworkable� because it doesn’t resolve the status of immigrants who are here.

The Pew Hispanic Center estimates there are 10 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States.

Another plan by Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho , deals only with agricultural workers, and Domenici said it was “too narrow.�

Domenici also has problems with a bill introduced by Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz ., and Ted Kennedy, D-Mass ., which would allow the undocumented workers already in the United States to obtain work permits for up to six years. Under the proposal, which is supported by immigrant-advocacy groups, workers and their families would then be eligible for legal permanent residence and ultimately citizenship after paying fines, penalties and back taxes.

Restrictionist groups reject the McCain plan as a “citizenship giveaway .�

What Domenici would like to see instead is three- to five-year permits for undocumented workers who already are here. Those permits might be extendable , he said, but at the end of the road, immigrants would have to “get in the normal line� to become citizens.

“That’s the little twist,� he said. “During the time of their stay, they could get in line to become legal entrants.�

“How many could come back in through the allotment? Well, that will be a debated item,� he said.

One analyst, who supports the McCain-Kennedy proposal, said that while he welcomes Domenici joining his colleagues in proposing immigration reform, the notion that people could resolve their status by getting in line isn’t realistic.

“There is no line for people to get into,� said Josh Bernstein, policy director for the National Immigration Law Center. The United States currently gives permanent visas to 1 million people per year. “That cup is already full, and if you fill it anymore, it will just flow over.�

Domenici said he also supports dramatic increases in spending for border enforcement. The senate version of the 2006 Homeland Security Appropriations bill includes nearly $1 billion for new border-patrol agents, immigration-detention centers and equipment.

Nevertheless, Domenici said he expects to hear from immigration opponents about his reform ideas.

“Some people are going to say that damn Domenici wants to put Americans out of work. ... But the point is (the immigrants) are already working. They’re not bums,� he said.

New Mexico’s Democratic senator, Jeff Bingaman, also spent the day talking about immigration. He was in Deming , hearing from border-patrol agents and city officials about their problems.

Bingaman said he learned that apprehensions in Deming have jumped from 29,168 in 2000 to 36,134 so far this fiscal year.

Bingaman hasn’t signed onto any current proposals but said any reform measure needs to address border security as well as allowing people who are undocumented to “regularize� their status.

“I frankly think it will be hard to get something through this current Congress,� Bingaman said.


Comments

By Steve Taff (Submitted: 08/16/2005 9:33 am)
Same 'ol, same 'ol - The politicans just don't get it! 91% of Americans say; 1) close the borders IMMEDIATELY, 2) IMMEDIATELY HIRE 10,000 ICE agents and begin/restart immigration sweeps, 3)Encourage and support the provisions of Federal law that ALREADY ALLOW for local law enforcement to participate in IMMIGRATION MATTERS, 4) IMMEDIATELY stop the position pandering, your politicing and subsequent rewarding of these ILLEGAL ALIEN law breakers, 5) IMMEDIATELY IMPLEMENT "Volunteer Border Patrol Watch groups", 6) IMMEDIATELY STOP analyzing the problem, we the majority know the fix - YOU POLITICIANS NEED TO JUST FIX IT! 7) IMMEDIATELY STOP ALL talk of an amnesty, guest-worker program and INSIST ON 'ENFORCEMENT FIRST' of our existing laws, border security, incarceration, deportation, penalize/fine employers - 'FIRST'

By Eli Chavez (Submitted: 08/16/2005 8:55 am)
Sen. Pete should consult with his Corporate and contry Club Buddies in their needs and then kick his idea around... The Fruit Growers Asso. will not support his plan. Why? They would have nobody to pick the fruit... Its all about Money.

By Chris Mechels (Submitted: 08/16/2005 8:55 am)
This stupidity seems to carry over from the drug problem, where we focus on the suppliers, not the users. We don't prosecute the drug users because they, too often, are our kids and friends. And, as long as the demand exists, we will have illegal drugs. I think we all know that by now.

Same thing with the immigrants. If we starting putting those who employ "illegal immigrants" in jail we could fix the problem, and we all know that. We also know that we aren't going to jail them, because they have political clout and money. So, we are just doing politics as usual, and that includes Pete Domenici, who is meddling where he seems clueless.

The real problem, with drugs and illegal immmigrants, is that we insist on attacking the problem in the wrong place; the supply. It is a "demand driven" problem, and the demand is high. Blaming the suppliers just confuses the issue. I am left with the impression that this is all just more politics; a real solution (attacking the demand side) isn't being talked about, by anyone.



By Alf Abeyta (Submitted: 08/16/2005 8:07 am)
Maybe Senator Pete would like to advocate for labor unions, since unions will be protective of their membership; hence, jobs will be for citizens and legal residents only. It is a win-win situation for workers and border issues.

By Ed Campbell (Submitted: 08/16/2005 7:37 am)
Although the Pew Report can be as PC as anyone else hanging out in the DC area, the term used in their report is "unauthorized migrants".

The step further away from reality -- must have landed in this article from the Senator, the NEW MEXICAN or it's author. In any case, someone who never glanced at the report.

http://pewhispanic.org/files/reports/46.pdf or the press release at http://pewhispanic.org/newsroom/release ... leaseID=33

By Don Nickell (Submitted: 08/16/2005 7:25 am)
Possibly we could get Mexico and the US to agree to have Mayflower move all our citizens and business (including US Steel) to Mexico and vice versa. Then the Illegals would want to go back to Mexico and we could come home. ROFL

By Jacob Waltz (Submitted: 08/16/2005 6:44 am)
This is cute:

"The Pew Hispanic Center estimates there are 10 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States. "

It really should be rewritten as:

"The Pew Hispanic Center estimates there are 10 million individuals in violation of federal law living in the United States. "

Calling them "undocumented immigrants" is like calling a burglar an "uninvited house guest".

By Ed Campbell (Submitted: 08/16/2005 5:35 am)
We must thank the NEW MEXICAN for keeping everyone up-to-date on PC buzzwords. I hadn't know until today that requiring folks to live up to the law was -- restrictionist.

I wonder who thought that one up? The same maven who decided that constipation was occasional irregularity or a slum was sub-standard inner-city housing? More likely, someone working for the same politicians who decided that civilian casualties are only collateral damage.

It's a nice Liberal stretch, though. Extend the old term "restricted" from our red-white-and-blue anti-Jewish tradition -- to include illegal migrant labor.