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Immigration See other Immigration Articles Title: Bill would permit illegal immigrants to stay Bill would permit illegal immigrants to stay Mike Madden Republic Washington Bureau Mar. 22, 2007 10:17 AM WASHINGTON - Millions of undocumented immigrants could get legal permission to stay in the U.S. by paying fines and symbolically re-entering the country, under an immigration reform bill introduced in the House Thursday. The bill also would allow up to 400,000 foreign workers to come to the U.S. legally every year. The legislation would require Homeland Security officials to certify that border security and worksite enforcement measures are in place before allowing foreign workers to apply for new visas. It would force undocumented immigrants to leave the country and then re-enter before they could apply for conditional legal status that would eventually lead to citizenship. advertisement Those mandates were added to the proposed legislation during careful negotiations aimed at giving cover to Republican supporters of the bill in hopes of avoiding the partisan standoff that killed similar legislation last year. Supporters said they have crafted a bill that can pick up enough supporters in both parties to pass. "This bill will end illegal immigration," said Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., the bill's chief co-sponsor along with Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill. Supporters of immigration reform believe they have their best chance of passing legislation in years, with Democrats in control of Congress and the White House pressing hard for GOP allies to sign on to the bill as well. The Senate passed similar legislation last year, but border security hard-liners in the House kept the two chambers from negotiating a final compromise proposal. But Thursday's move underscored the difficulties still ahead for reformers, who had expected the Senate to take up immigration well before the House did. Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., are still discussing what to do about immigration in the Senate, weeks after lobbyists and aides had hoped a bill would be introduced. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said the new bill provides "an excellent framework" for immigration legislation, and community organizers said they hoped the bill would help move the debate along. "We can never forget that the immigration reform debate is about real people," said a statement from the Fair Immigration Reform Movement, an umbrella group of organizers of many of the massive marches for reform last spring. "Every day our immigration system remains broken is another day when good people fall victim to exploitation on the job and children wait hopelessly to be reunited with their parents." The tougher provisions added to the bill did little to placate longtime critics. "They keep changing the shade of lipstick, but like I've said time and time again, it's still the same old pig," said Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., who is running for the GOP presidential nomination on a fiercely anti-illegal immigration platform.
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#3. To: Red Jones (#0)
Does anybody else see the end result that this swarm will cause us? These fuckers get free everything, while we pay thru the nose. And if that isn't bad enough, they're entitled to affirmative action, so these brown bastards get bumped ahead of white kids. That should make any Caucasian’s blood boil, but we are a race of gutless wonders. I hope to god some will stand up before it's too late.
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