Thread: Bush Seeks Middle Ground

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld ... -headlines

Bush Seeks Middle Ground on Immigration Bill
By Joel Havemann, Times Staff Writer
June 1, 2006


WASHINGTON -- President Bush spelled out his bottom line today for immigration reform legislation, and it landed him somewhat between the enforcement-heavy House-passed version of the bill and the gentler Senate version.

Like the House, which passed a bill late last year, Bush would tighten border controls and stiffen penalties for employers who knowingly employ foreigners in this country illegally.

But like the Senate, which approved legislation just last week, he would not rule out allowing some foreigners who have been in the United States for many years to stay here.

"These folks should not be given an automatic path to citizenship," Bush said in a speech to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce a few blocks from the White House. "That is called amnesty....I oppose amnesty because it would be unfair to those people who are here lawfully, and I oppose amnesty because it would invite further waves of illegal immigrants."

The House and Senate face the daunting task of forging a compromise between the two very different bills that a majority of both chambers could accept. Some lawmakers have already pronounced the task hopeless.

Bush sought a "rational middle ground" between providing amnesty for all illegal immigrants and requiring every illegal immigrant to leave.

"The middle ground recognizes there are differences between an illegal immigrant who crossed the border recently and someone who's worked here for many years, who's got a home, a family and a clean record," Bush said.

"I believe that illegal immigrants who have roots in our country and who want to stay should have to pay a meaningful penalty for breaking the law, to pay their taxes, to learn English and to work in a job for a number of years," Bush said.

"People who meet these conditions should be eventually permitted to apply for citizenship like other foreign workers, but approval would not be automatic. They would have to wait in line behind those who played by the rules and followed the law."

By way of border enforcement, Bush proposed an additional 6,000 Border Patrol agents, doubling the number from the beginning of his presidency. While the new agents were being recruited and trained, he said he would deploy 6,000 National Guard troops to the border.

"The best way to help the Border Patrol is to construct high-tech fences in urban areas [and] to build patrol roads and barriers in rural areas. We're going to create a virtual fence that employs motion detectors and infrared cameras and unmanned aerial vehicles to detect and prevent illegal crossings."

Bush also repeated his call for a guest worker program to fill employers' needs in the United States and to take the pressure off the guards at the border. "It would give an honest immigrant a chance to contribute to our economy and at the same time provide for their families," he said.

He also called for stiffer for employers who knowingly hired illegal immigrants.

"Today, the fine for a business that fails to check an employee's ID can be as low as a hundred dollars," Bush told the audience of employers. "They might as well pay a speeding ticket. The penalty for knowingly hiring an illegal immigrant can be as low as $250, and can't exceed $2,000. These low penalties, frankly, provide little incentive for dishonest businesses to obey the law."

Finally, in a nod to Congress' hard-liners, Bush said immigration reform "must honor the great American tradition of the melting pot.... Americans are bound together by our shared ideals, an appreciation of our history, respect for the flag we fly, and an ability to speak and write the English language."

I would like to beleive this is something.....but to me virtual is pretend. And how is filming and unmanned vessils going to do anything but take pictures and keep count of the waves comming over?

That has been my thought on the unmanned flights too. What do you do just keep a count of the numbers coming across? The flights should have some deterrent ability say laser spotting with chemical dies to mark the Illegal for pickup.

This administration still doesn't get it. With the fake documents widely used by illegal aliens and with many others having no documentation how do you differentiate between illegal aliens who have been here for 15, 5, 1 year or 1 week? I will bet once this amnesty sham is rammed down our throats the government will proclaim there is nothing we can do about this so we will grant amnesty to all illegal aliens. Why do you think the jackass senate proposed S-2611?

IMPEACH BUSH NOW!!!!!!!

Congress: The most corrupt organization money can buy!!!!!!!