http://www.theepochtimes.com/news/6-6-17/42863.html

U.S. Commerce Secretary Talks Immigration Reform in NY

By Shayna Jacobs
Epoch Times New York Staff Jun 17, 2006

REFORMER: U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez discusses immigration reform at a U.S Hispanic Chamber of Commerce round table in Midtown last Wednesday. (Mary Blanco)NEW YORK—At a closed meeting in Midtown, Manhattan, U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said deportation of the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants now residing in the United States is not an option.

Gutierrez spoke with representatives from foreign embassies, and discussed potential "comprehensive" immigration reform proposals last Wednesday, while immigration reform continues to be hotly debated in Congress.

Gutierrez, a Cuban native, is a Bush administration economic and business advisor.

"We can't just say we don't need these workers, deport them," said Gutierrez, who posed for photographers alongside Israel Romero, Public Relations Director of Save Latin America, and Antonio Ibarria, publisher of El Especial, a newspaper in Spanish, based in Union City, N.J.

Randel Johnson, Vice President of Labor, Immigration, and Employee Benefits of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, called on companies themselves, who employ illegal immigrants, to take responsibility.

"We have a messy situation that has developed over a long time and it's going to take companies to step up to the plate and come up with a solution," said Johnson.

Johnson discussed the idea of a comprehensive solution, being one where the law is set in accordance with the situation's reality. He added that the United States relies on illegal workers, and that the economy would be disrupted if they were deported, but that it's important to enforce border control and the employee legality verification system must be improved.

The private session was held in a conference room at the New York Science Industry and Business Library on Madison Avenue, consisting mostly of members of Latin American organizations. While comprehensive solution concepts were brought to the table, particulars were unaddressed.