Thread: Comprehensive Reform Impossible says Frist

By Donna Smith
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. congressional leaders are giving up on broad immigration legislation that would legalize millions of illegal immigrants and instead will concentrate on border security ahead of the elections, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said on Wednesday.
"I think it would be next to impossible to pass a comprehensive bill that includes dealing with the diversity of 12 million people here in the next three weeks," the Tennessee Republican told reporters.
President George W. Bush backs comprehensive immigration legislation along the lines passed by the U.S. Senate. That bill would have created a guest worker program and put millions of illegal immigrants on a path toward U.S. citizenship.
But the Senate bill faced stiff opposition in the U.S. House of Representatives from a number of Republicans who preferred the House bill, which focused on border security and work place enforcement.
House Republicans held a series of hearings over the summer to highlight their concerns with the Senate bill. House leaders plan to meet on Thursday to discuss how to push border security legislation through Congress before lawmakers break at the end of the month to campaign for November 7 congressional elections.
"Congress will put legislation on the president's desk this fall that will strengthen our borders," House Majority Leader John Boehner, an Ohio Republican, told reporters on Tuesday.
Frist's comments drew an angry response from Sen. Edward Kennedy, a Massachusetts Democrat who helped write the Senate bill.
"How can Republicans say they are for making America safer when they can't even pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill to protect our borders?" he said in a statement. "They are so divided over immigration that it will take leadership from the president to break the impasse."
Frist said he was discussing with House Speaker Dennis Hastert, an Illinois Republican, how to proceed.
"I would think we need to have border security and strong border security first," he said. "I would couple with that work site enforcement, if at all possible."
At a minimum lawmakers will address the issue ahead of November 7, by increasing spending on border agents, fencing and other measures aimed at stemming the flow of illegal immigrants, congressional aides said.
But proponents of comprehensive legislation say sooner or later Congress will have to address the 12 million illegal immigrants living in the country.
"There are some very powerful players who still want it to happen," said Tamar Jacoby, an immigration analyst at the conservative Manhattan Institute for Policy Research.

Frist said he was discussing with House Speaker Dennis Hastert, an Illinois Republican, how to proceed.
"I would think we need to have border security and strong border security first," he said. "I would couple with that work site enforcement, if at all possible."

The senate bill is dead.
I agree with the above quote.
First, enact a border security bill.
Second, a work enforcement bill (it is already against the law to hire illegals but hasn't been enforced).
That in itself will take care of much of the problem of 'what to do with the 12-20 million illegals here.'
If the Reps get two bills like that done I would dance in the street at this point.
And with the large majority of citizens wanting the above done the Reps just might retain control of congress. If they do nothing (which congress is good at with tough issues) they're sunk.