[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 168 (Thursday, December 22, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2644]
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. LEE TERRY

                              of nebraska

                    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. TERRY. Mr. Chairman, I believe that America is at its best when 
we welcome people from other countries, other cultures and possessing 
diverse skill sets. I believe that, in fact, this strengthens our 
country.
  I need only to go back a couple of generations to see this in my 
family, who immigrated to this amazing country from Ireland and Eastern 
Europe.
  But my ancestors came legally and that is the question, in part, 
before us today. We have lost control of both our northern and southern 
borders, our maritime border is porous and anyone with the most 
innocent or worst of intentions can walk or drive into the United 
States and assimilate into our communities.
  This illegal immigration must be stopped.
  Securing our border is the proper first step. This Act authorizes a 
thousand new border patrol agents and properly equips them with modern 
technology. More needs to be done to properly secure our ports of entry 
along our east and west coasts and our northern and southern borders. 
For the many agencies involved this is a large but very important task.
  Employers are provided better means to information, allowing them to 
determine whether or not the potential hire is properly documented. 
This Act also places some responsibility on employers to make such a 
determination.
  We must revise our current laws to allow legal and secure 
immigration.
  I am disappointed that this bill doesn't include a sensible, 
nonamnesty guest-worker provision. We have the opportunity to take the 
lead on this aspect of immigration policy and it would be a mistake to 
ignore it.
  A good guest-worker statute recognizes that folks from around the 
world and yes, from Mexico, desire to work in the United States to earn 
good wages to help their families, and these workers add to the value 
of our country and its economy.
  A guest-worker statute should ensure that the guest-worker is not a 
criminal, is not associated with a terrorist organization, is healthy 
and has an employer-sponsor. The employer must have some responsibility 
to actually hire this person for the entire duration of the worker's 
time in the United States and notify the proper agency if the worker 
changes or leaves the employer.
  As the great nation we are, we should welcome those who want to 
contribute and not accept those who refuse to live under our rule of 
law.

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