Poll: Opinions go against immigration measure
By Susan Page, USA TODAY

WASHINGTON β€” As the Senate prepares to vote on a landmark immigration bill, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds that Americans who have an opinion about it are overwhelmingly opposed to the deal.
By nearly 3-1, those who have a view say they're against the compromise supported by Senate Democratic leaders and President Bush. However, 58% of those surveyed say they don't know enough about the legislation to favor or oppose it.

The telephone poll of 1,007 adults was taken Friday through Sunday.

POLL RESULTS:See the complete poll data

The bill would increase security along U.S. borders and grant about 12 million immigrants living illegally in the USA a chance to become citizens. It also would expand the "guest-worker" program and change the criteria for admitting immigrants to give less weight to family ties and more to job skills.

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An ABC News/Washington Post survey released Monday found narrow majorities of Americans supported an expanded guest-worker program and a path to legal status for illegal immigrants in the USA.

The legislation has divided the Republican Party β€” it seems sure to be raised at tonight's debate in New Hampshire among the Republican presidential field β€” and brought withering criticism from such conservative talk-show hosts as Rush Limbaugh and Lou Dobbs.

A bipartisan group of senators, led by Massachusetts Democratic Edward Kennedy and Arizona Republican Jon Kyl, have defeated amendments that would have upended the bill's fragile compromises.

One key debate this week is likely to be over the priority that would be given in the legislation to immigrants with particular job skills.

Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., has proposed continuing the priority given to family ties in current law to hundreds of thousands of people who have applied for green cards.

New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, both Democratic presidential contenders, have endorsed that proposal.

Kyl says he'll withdraw his support for the bill if the amendment passes.

In the USA TODAY/Gallup Poll, Americans were split on the issue: 44% say those with family ties in the USA should be given preference; 43% say highly skilled workers should be given preference.

Charges that the bill amounts to "amnesty" for illegal immigrants have struck a chord among foes. In response to an open-ended question, 39% of the bill's critics cite "amnesty" as a reason for their opposition.

Among supporters, reasons most often cited were the need to do something to address the issue and the feeling that the bill's provisions were fair.

In the poll, 30% oppose the bill and 11% favor it. Four percent say they "strongly favor" the measure while 18% "strongly oppose" it.

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