Bush Accelerates Border Funds
WASHINGTON (By David Espo, Associated
Press) June 14, 2007) — Key senators tentatively
agreed on a plan to revive a stalled immigration bill on Thursday, aided by
President Bush's support for a quick $4.4 billion aimed at "securing our
borders and enforcing our laws at the work site."
Officials who spoke on condition of
anonymity said Republican and Democratic supporters of the bill presented
their proposal to the Senate's top two leaders, who in turn met to discuss
it.
Precise details presented to Majority
Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., were
not disclosed.
The legislation has generated intense
controversy, particularly for provisions envisioning eventual citizenship
for many of the estimated 12 million immigrants now in the country
unlawfully. The bill also calls for greater border security and a crackdown
on the hiring of illegal employees.
In general, according to officials familiar
with the discussions, Republicans and Democrats would each be accorded
roughly a dozen chances to amend the measure, with the hope that they would
then combine to provide the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster by
die-hard opponents.
Officials also said the Bush-backed plan
for accelerated funding would be among the changes to be voted on. So, too,
a proposal by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, to toughen a requirement
for illegal immigrants to return to their home country before gaining legal
status.
But in a gauge of the complexity of the
rescue effort, officials said the Senate's decision last week to terminate a
temporary worker program after five years would likely not be subject to
change before a vote on final passage. Many of the bill's strongest
supporters opposed the five-year provision when it came to a vote last week.
The officials who described the emerging
plan did so on condition of anonymity, saying the negotiations had been
conducted in private.
"We're going to show the American people
that the promises in this bill will be kept," Bush said, two days after
launching a personal rescue mission.
Any agreement is subject to approval by
Reid, who has said repeatedly it is up to Bush and Republicans to line up
the votes needed to advance the measure if it is to be brought back to the
Senate for debate. Reid, who has expressed misgivings about elements of the
bill, sidetracked it last week after supporters gained only 45 of the 60
votes needed.
Republicans accounted for only seven of the
45 votes, and Reid said earlier this week, "We'll move on to immigration
when they have their own act together."
Bush's decision to personally announce
support for the accelerated funding reflected concerns expressed by
Republican senators at a closed-door meeting on Tuesday. Several told him
their constituents doubted the government was capable of following through
on a commitment to enforce immigration laws.
In a letter sent to Bush before the
meeting, Georgia Republican Sens. Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson wrote,
"This lack of trust is rooted in the mistakes made in 1986, and the
continued chaos surrounding our immigration laws. Understandably, the lack
of credibility the federal government has on this issue gives merit to the
skepticism of many about future immigration reform."
Under the legislation as drafted, money for
border enforcement would be collected gradually as illegal immigrants pay
the fines and fees needed to achieve legal status. The letter asked Bush to
secure the border before other elements of the immigration measure go into
effect, and the president agreed in his remarks to the Associated Builders
and Contractors
"One common concern is whether the
government will provide the resources to meet the goals in the bill. They
say, 'It's fine to talk about it, are you actually going to do something?'"
he said.
"To answer these concerns I support an
amendment that will provide $4.4 billion in immediate additional funding for
securing our borders and enforcing our laws at the work site," he said.
"By matching our benchmarks with these
critical funds, we're going to show the American people that the promises in
this bill will be kept."
Two Republican supporters of the
legislation, Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Jon Kyl of Arizona,
had previously proposed advanced funding.
"The moment the presidential signing pen
meets the paper these funds will be available," Graham said in a statement
welcoming Bush's remarks.
But Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., who opposes
the legislation, took a different view. "I appreciate the effort to fund
border security, but there's simply no reason why we should be forced to tie
amnesty to it. If the administration was serious about fulfilling the border
security promises, then this funding should have been supported all along,
not offered at the last minute to attract votes to a bad bill."
