Thread: Sen. Martinez slams immigration bill opponents, challenges t

Sen. Martinez slams immigration bill opponents, challenges them to act

By LAURA WIDES-MUNOZ
Associated Press

June 29, 2007, 4:20 PM EDT

LAKE BUENA VISTA -- The Chairman of the Republican Party on Friday lambasted Democrats and Republicans who helped kill an immigration bill in the Senate and challenged them to come up with a solution beyond ``just build a fence along the border.''

``The voices of negativity now have a responsibility to come up with an answer,'' RNC Chairman and U.S. Senator Mel Martinez, R-Fla. said.

``How will you fix the situation to make peoples' lives better? How will you continue to grow the economy? How will we bring people out of the shadows for our national security and for the sake of being a country that is just?'' he demanded.

Martinez spoke during a gathering of more than 1,000 Hispanic officials from across the country at Disney World, a day after the immigration bill's Senate supporters fell short of the 60 votes needed to limit debate and clear the way for its final passage.

Martinez promised to work with members of the U.S. House of Representatives to try to revive the legislation, a measure the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials supports.

Time for such efforts is tight before the 2008 presidential campaign heats up, Martinez told reporters, but he added, ``you can't live from election to election. We have to once in a while act as responsible, elected officials and resolve the nation's problems.''

A group of about half a dozen U.S. representatives planned to strategize over the weekend at the conference on how to revive the proposal.

Wednesday's immigration vote was 46 to 53, with three-quarters of the Senate's Republicans voting to derail the bill. But the Republican Party was not to blame for its failure, Martinez said.

President Bush sent two cabinet members to Congress several times a week for months to work out a bipartisan compromise, he noted.

By failing to act, the Senate also tied law enforcement's hands, Martinez said.

The proposed immigration bill would have provided $4.4 billion for border security and workplace visa enforcement.

Martinez came to Florida from Cuba at 15 and spent four years separated from his parents until they were able to flee the communist island. He said he feared more families would be torn apart if the status quo remains.

He also warned local and state officials at the conference that the immigration issue will now land in their laps through local ordinances.

``We're going to have a hodgepodge of local laws. We will have cities that will declare themselves sanctuary cities. And then we will have others that will make it a felony simply to rent to illegal immigrants,'' he said.

But he blamed those who supported the bill for not explaining well enough to the American people the flaws of the current law and the benefits of the proposed one _ and to allow opponents to define the bill as simply amnesty.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/ ... -headlines

My reply to this worthless, racist traitor would get me banned from this site, so I'll leave this link for those of you in Florida who might like to remove Mr. Martinez from his present position.

http://www.recallmartinez.org/

Duplicate:


http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=F ... ic&t=71655