Thread: A few Bills that passed relating to Immigration!

Thursday afternoon, the Senate voted 99 to 0 to approve the Iraq Supplemental spending bill that includes a number of immigration provisions. Among the amendments passed yesterday was a provision by Senator John Ensign (R-NV) to provide for 400 more Border Patrol agents. This is in addition to an amendment by Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV) that provides $390 million to hire 650 more border patrol agents, 250 new immigration investigators, and 168 new immigration enforcement agents and deportation officers. Byrd's amendment also provides funds for 2,000 additional detention beds as well as funding to train the new personnel. On Tuesday, the Senate voted against attaching Senator Larry Craig's (R-ID) AgJOBS amnesty to the bill ÂÂ* a huge victory for national security and American workers. Unfortunately, Senator Barbara Mikulski's (D-MD) amendment that could potentially triple the number of H-2B workers in the United States passed the Senate by a vote of 94 to 6. Overall, the Senate-passed Iraq Supplemental spending bill represents a net gain for immigration reduction and national security. The next action on the bill will be for Conferees from the Senate and House to meet to negotiate differences between the Senate-passed version and the House-passed version, which includes the REAL ID Act.

The Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act for Defense, the Global War on Terror, and Tsunami Relief (Iraq supplemental) was passed by the Senate on Thursday, April 21, by a vote of 99 to 0. This bill became a vehicle for a number of immigration proposals. While Senate consideration of the bill resulted in a net victory for immigration reduction and national security, a few Senators tried to use this must-pass bill to fund our troops to further their cheap-labor agendas.

Positive immigration outcomes in the Senate-passed Iraq Supplemental include:

* Rejection of Sen. Craig's (R-ID) AgJOBS amnesty amendment. In a procedural vote requiring 60 votes to limit debate and ensure a vote on the amendment the Senate voted 53 to 45 not to invoke cloture, effectively keeping the amnesty off the Iraq Supplemental. The AgJOBS amendment would have granted amnesty to every illegal alien, along with his or her family, who can produce sufficient evidence to show, "as a matter of just and reasonable inference," that the illegal alien performed agricultural work in the United States for as little as the equivalent of 2 12 standard work weeks.

* Approved by a vote of 64 to 35 Sen. Robert Byrd's (D-WV) amendment to provide $390 million to hire 650 more border patrol agents, 250 new immigration investigators, and 168 new immigration enforcement agents and deportation officers. Byrd's amendment also provides funds for 2,000 additional detention beds as well as funding to train the new personnel.
* Approval by voice vote of Sen. John Ensign's (R-NV) amendment to provide for 400 more Border Patrol agents. The $147 million required to pay the salaries and expenses for the 400 additional agents would be paid for by reducing America's contribution to international peacekeeping efforts run by the United Nations.

Negative immigration outcomes include:

* Passage of Sens. Mikulski (D-MD) and Gregg's (R-NH) H-2B increase, S. 352, by a vote of 94 to 6. This was a loss for some of America's most vulnerable workers as the amendment increases, from 66,000 to as many as three times that, the number of low-skill, temporary, foreign workers admitted to the United States each year. Mikulski's amendment will have a devastating impact on American workers. The five occupations for which employers import the most H-2B workers are: 1) landscape laborer, 2) forest worker, 3) maid/housekeeping, 4) stable attendant, and 5) construction worker. Yet, these same industries have the highest unemployment rates in the United States. Unskilled, American workers are the most vulnerable to unemployment. Increasing the number of H-2B workers will reduce the number of jobs available to these Americans, drive down wages, and drive up unemployment.

The REAL ID Act was not debated in the Senate, but will be a major issue in the Conference Committee, where the House-passed version of the Iraq supplemental will be reconciled with the Senate-passed version. REAL ID is already in the House version, so it is guaranteed to be an issue in the conference, even though the Senate is considering a version of H.R. 1268 that does not include REAL ID. It is also possible for the House to reject Mikulski's H-2B amendment in the Conference.

Source: US Senate

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It would seem things are going in the right direction, we cant stop we need to go further and deport them all and empty our jails which i dont see happening yet or even charging those in Mexico for thier illegals. Score one for the Good guys.

Acidrain

YES

* Passage of Sens. Mikulski (D-MD) and Gregg's (R-NH) H-2B increase, S. 352, by a vote of 94 to 6. This was a loss for some of America's most vulnerable workers as the amendment increases, from 66,000 to as many as three times that, the number of low-skill, temporary, foreign workers admitted to the United States each year. Mikulski's amendment will have a devastating impact on American workers.

That's the very reason we should be working with every single House Member that is serious about crushing the Illegal Alien Invasion. The House is our only hope at stopping some of this, imo.

Yes, the House definitely has its head on straight...we need to send them some faxes, etc. to encourage them to delete the Milkuski bill...keep the Real ID bill...

RR

RR
Well, maybe 1/4 of it's head anyway, LOL.

I say it's time to DEMAND.........how about you? We may have long passed the "encouragement" period

Acidrain, thankyou for keeping an eye on what our congresscritters are attempting to pull on us. I do appreciate it.