[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 163 (Saturday, December 17, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2598]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 BORDER PROTECTION, ANTITERRORISM, AND ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION CONTROL ACT 
                                OF 2005

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                            HON. MARK UDALL

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, December 16, 2005

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 4437) to 
     amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to strengthen 
     enforcement of the immigration laws, to enhance border 
     security, and for other purposes:

  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Chairman, while there is much in this bill 
that concerns me, I will vote for it because its primary purpose is to 
make necessary improvements in securing our borders, which I think is 
needed as part--but only part--of immigration-reform legislation.
  To be frank, however, if this bill represented our last word on 
immigration reform, I would vote against it. By focusing exclusively on 
the question of border security and immigration enforcement, the House 
Republican leadership is ignoring the most difficult and challenging 
aspect of immigration reform, namely the question of how to deal 
humanely and effectively with the estimated 8-11 million illegal 
immigrants currently living and working in this country.
  Moreover, I am not in favor of making every man, woman and child who 
overstays a visa or resides in this country illegally a criminal. By 
making any violation of immigration rules a criminal rather than a 
civil offense we may only end up discouraging law enforcement from 
discovering real threats of terrorism or violent criminal conduct. 
Driving illegal immigrants deeper underground, even more than current 
law, which keeps them in the shadows, is a terrible tactic if our 
overarching goal is national security.
  So, Mr. Chairman, there are some strong reasons for voting against 
this legislation. It offers no full solution to the problem of illegal 
immigration; it is unnecessarily punitive toward otherwise law-abiding 
individuals, and it unwisely commits this country to the construction 
of a costly border fence that many security experts believe will divert 
resources away from more important homeland security needs.
  My readiness to support this bill was also reduced by the rhetoric of 
some who are most vocally in support of it. There is perhaps no more 
divisive issue in our country than immigration, and sadly, the tone and 
content of much of the debate in the House has only fueled the 
division. I discussed the tone and substance of this debate with a good 
friend and colleague from the Republican side of the aisle and found 
that we agreed that the House was missing an opportunity to unite the 
country and pass a sorely-needed comprehensive immigration reform bill.
  Despite these concerns, I will vote in favor of this bill because we 
have to make necessary investments in border security and enforcement. 
The 9/11 Commission has recommended increased immigration enforcement 
personnel, stronger surveillance, tougher entry-and-exit procedures and 
the use of better technologies to enhance our border security. This 
bill addresses these concerns and I favor all of these provisions.
  Finally, I am convinced that reassuring the American people that we 
have taken strong action to strengthen enforcement and secure our 
borders is a necessary predicate for the harder and more complicated 
task of addressing the problem of existing illegal and undocumented 
workers.
  With stronger border security and enforcement established we can work 
with the Administration and our colleagues in the Senate to build a 
consensus for the harder task of clarifying the status of existing 
illegal immigrants, most of whom are hard-working and otherwise law-
abiding people, in a humane and thoughtful way that will protect 
children, include guest-worker needs and establish a fairer process for 
legalized entry. If that effort succeeds--as I think it can and am 
convinced it must--the result not only will be better than the bill 
before us, it will be a measure that deserves to be sent to the 
President for signing into law.

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