http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercuryn ... 136848.htm

Posted on Sun, Mar. 19, 2006

Sen. Feinstein hasn't made a commitment on guest-worker law


Mercury News Editorial

The highly anticipated vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee on a guest-worker program for illegal immigrants promises to be close. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., is a member of the committee and may cast a key vote on whether the bill that emerges from the committee is comprehensive and fair. Based on what she has said so far, it's not clear how she'll vote on March 27.

Feinstein has said she favors a pilot program for legalized status for undocumented workers -- but only for farmworkers who could prove they've worked in the fields for three years. After five more years, they'd be eligible to apply for permanent residency.

We don't understand why Feinstein distinguishes farmworkers from restaurant workers, gardeners or day laborers -- many of whom are here illegally but are contributing to the nation's economy, performing jobs that in many cases would go unfilled.

Feinstein has expressed concern over ``whether guest-worker programs become magnets for more undocumented populations.'' That's why any solution must include tightly enforced sanctions against employers who violate the law. The magnet has been government's failure to enforce it.

Feinstein may have to choose between a guest-worker program that goes farther than she prefers and a harsh law that criminalizes those who are making a life in America. For the senior senator from a state that values the contributions of immigrants, the decision should be clear.