[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 41 (Tuesday, April 4, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2759-S2760]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           IMMIGRATION REFORM

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I wish to comment on the immigration reform 
debate. Our borders are dangerously porous, and our immigration system 
is flatout broken. That is why it is so important for us to debate and 
focus on the issue of immigration reform and to bring that debate to 
closure over the course of this week. It is my hope that by Friday we 
will have a bill that is fair and equitable, that gives priority to our 
security concerns and at the same time respects America's strong and 
proud immigrant tradition. We are a nation of the rule of law and a 
strong nation of immigrant heritage.

[[Page S2760]]

  Last October, I met with a number of Senators, including Senators 
Cornyn and McCain, to discuss my intention to bring the immigration 
issue to the floor this spring. Why? Because the system is broken. 
There are millions of people coming across our borders, 25 percent 
growth last year in illegal immigrants coming across our borders. It is 
broken. It is broken at the borders, in the interior. And our temporary 
worker program is broken.
  I laid out at that time a specific plan for border security where we 
had broad agreement and then build on the consensus of border security 
with a comprehensive approach that included what happens on the 
interior; that is, the worksite, workplace enforcement, as well as, in 
the third dimension, fixing the temporary worker program.
  Over last week and the first part of this week, we have followed the 
plan laid out last October. We started with strong border control and 
expanded to interior and worksite enforcement, as well as what I hope 
will be a fair, equitable, commonsense temporary worker program. All 
three elements are necessary.
  I am optimistic that by staying focused and by working together--
again, this is not a partisan issue, as the Democratic leader knows in 
talking to his caucus and as I know in talking to my caucus, this is 
not a Republican or Democratic issue; it is a challenge for all of us 
to put together a workable, realistic immigration reform bill--we can 
forge a plan that deals effectively with our national security, that 
protects the rule of law, and that recognizes that our economic 
interests can be reflected in strong legal immigration programs.
  What we cannot support, however, is amnesty. To me, amnesty is when 
you give someone who has clearly broken the law a leg up on the pathway 
to citizenship. Giving illegal immigrants a special path to citizenship 
essentially rewards people who have broken the law. It simply doesn't 
make sense when you have other law-abiding people around the world who 
are being disadvantaged. You are punishing people who follow the law. 
To give amnesty, as we did in the 1980s and as some propose to do 
today, simply sends a strong signal to the world or to anybody who 
would like to come to America that they don't need to obey the law; if 
you sneak into this country, eventually there is going to be another 
round of amnesty. That aggravates the problem. It creates a magnet to 
attract people to this country illegally.
  Twelve million illegal immigrants now reside in the United States. We 
hear the figures--11 million, 12 million, or is it 21 million? We don't 
really know because they are illegal immigrants. We don't know what 
their names are. We don't know where they are. We don't know exactly 
what they are doing. One of the goals has to be to bring them out of 
the shadows.
  What has become increasingly clear from our discussion in the Senate 
is that this is not a monolithic group, these 12 million people. Forty 
percent have been here longer than 10 years. In all likelihood, they 
are much better assimilated, maybe fully assimilated into our society 
today. Forty percent have been here less than 5 years. It may be that 
we will need to break down this group and look at it. Maybe the 40 
percent who have been here for greater than 5 years should have some 
access to a green card, and the 40 percent who have only been here a 
few months or maybe even a couple years could be dealt with 
differently. It is not a monolithic group. A successful, realistic 
immigration program has to acknowledge the different groups and treat 
them accordingly. Only then do I believe that we can succeed in getting 
the 12 million people out of the shadows, encouraging them to identify 
themselves and then function within the system.
  In addition, I support a strong and fair temporary worker program 
that allows people to fill what employment needs we have, to learn a 
skill, to send money home, to return to their hometowns to help build 
and develop their communities. As I said last October, we need this 
three-pronged approach which begins with border security, strengthens 
workplace enforcement, and offers a fair and realistic temporary worker 
program for the hard-working men and women who come to this country to 
earn for their families back home. All three elements are vital. All 
three require action. Only a comprehensive approach will fix this 
broken system.
  I look forward to continuing our debate this week. I am optimistic 
that by working together and applying a little common sense, we will 
come up with a plan that gets the job done and makes America safer and 
more secure.

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I would like to respond briefly to the 
majority leader.
  Pending before the Senate is a historic piece of legislation, maybe 
one of the most important bills we have considered in years. We are 
trying to fix a broken immigration system. It is entirely broken. 
Everyone concedes that our borders are out of control. At this point, 
we cannot control the flow of people across our borders, and we have no 
idea who is coming and going and staying in America. We couldn't afford 
that in normal circumstances. We can't afford it, certainly, when we 
are facing a war on terrorism where security is paramount.
  The bill we have before us says: Let's fix the borders. Let's make 
sure we have the appropriate number of officers on the borders, the 
technology so that people are not coming across illegally. Let's do it 
right.
  After 5 years of failure under this administration, we need to have 
borders that are better and stronger, and we need to know who is 
coming.
  Secondly, we have to acknowledge that there are 11 or 12 million 
people in America who are not legally recognized. They are here. They 
are working every day. They are an important part of our economy, but 
they are not legally recognized. The question before us is, How do we 
bring them out of the shadows to the point where we know who they are, 
where they live, and where they work? The only way to do that is to 
create an opportunity for them to reach legal status. But it is 
something they have to earn, not just automatically, not amnesty, no 
free ride. Don't put them in the front of the line but say to them: If 
you are willing to struggle hard for 10 or 11 years and meet those 
requirements, we will give you a chance for the legal pathway to 
citizenship. That is what this bill is all about.
  I yield the floor.

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