Thread: WHITE HOUSE NO-SHOW

Below is a transcript from Lou Dobbs, July 26th, about a congressional hearing on the two bills before the Senate on Immigration reform. NOT ONE MEMBER OF THE ADMINISTRATION could find the time to attend.

DOBBS: The Senate Judiciary Committee today held a critical hearing on immigration and fixing our broken borders. Incredibly, no one from the Bush administration responded to the committee's request to be there because the White House polled its witnesses, two top cabinet members, at the very last minute.

Lisa Sylvester reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LISA SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There are two competing immigration bills in the Senate. The legislative sponsors, senators Kennedy, McCain, Kyl and Cornyn, all showed up to answer questions. And a slate of immigration experts were there.

But oddly absent, Labor Secretary Elaine Chao and Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff. Both were scheduled to attend, but pulled out before the hearing started.

Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter says immigration is too important an issue to put off. SEN. ARLEN SPECTER (R-PA), CHAIRMAN, JUDICIARY COMMMITTEE: We decided to go ahead with the hearing. We're going to do our work. And when the administration wants to chime in, we'll be ready to listen.

SYLVESTER: If the Senate Judiciary Committee could find time, even in the middle of the U.S. Supreme Court nomination buildup, why not the administration? One thought, the White House may not have been prepared to embrace either one of the bills.

The Cornyn-Kyl bill creates a guest worker program that would require illegal aliens return to their home country in order to be eligible. And it would have tough new workplace enforcement rules.

The McCain-Kennedy bill grants guest worker status to as many as 20 million illegal aliens, puts them on a path to get green cards, and increases immigration levels even further.

The two approaches point out a huge division within the Republican Party and within the administration.

STEVEN CAMAROTA, CENTER FOR IMMIGRATION STUDIES: On the one hand, they look at the public opinion polls. Most Americans want the law enforced. They would like a more moderate pace of immigration. But some very powerful interest groups, mainly the business community and the leadership of the ethnic lobbies, want more immigration and they want to legalize the illegal aliens. And the administration is simply torn between sort of public opinion and the interest groups.

SYLVESTER: Playing to the various audiences looks a lot like indecision.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SYLVESTER: And we placed calls to the White House and the Labor Department to find out their explanation for not attending the hearing, but our calls were not returned.

The Homeland Security Department says it plans to testify at a later date. But today's hearing DHS officials dismissed as a panel discussion -- Lou.

DOBBS: The Department of Homeland Security dismissed the Judiciary Committee as a panel discussion?

SYLVESTER: It is very confusing, their explanation, because it certainly looked like a hearing. You had senators asking questions. You had people testifying today. But the way they're phrasing this is that they say that it was a panel discussion.

DOBBS: Well, let me offer a personal opinion and give the Department of Homeland Security something to think about. The Department of Homeland Security is running nothing more than a sham in what it calls border security in this nation, and perhaps ought to be paying attention to panel discussions certainly with one of the most powerful branches of what is a three-branch government in this country

I figure that the reason that they didn't attend was the fact that Bush and the RNC are holding back so they can spring their new proposal on us. They are just afraid to put themselves in a position of having to answer questions. And, I've decided that Cherthoff is even worse than Ridge as head of the Department of Homeland Security. I really was hopeful about him but he seems to think that sitting on his hands about the border issue is the answer to the problem. I tell you--ANYONE who is a member of this administration is going to agree with EVERYTHING that they put forth or they are OUT THE DOOR.

I think the reason they didn't attend is because they support it and don't want anyone to know. Remember, McCain is one of the sponsors and he is RNC.

Right. They just don't want to answer a question because it might show their hand on their new little plan. But, if that's not a cop out, I don't know what it is. They should have been right there TRYING to come up with solutions. I think the article was correct in saying that, if Congress had time to address it even with the Supreme Court Justice discussions, the least the White House could have done was have representatives THERE!