[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 13]
[House]
[Page 17182]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION AND THE REAL ID ACT

  (Mrs. BLACKBURN asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Speaker, on Sunday the Chattanooga Times Free 
Press ran an op-ed that I wrote about the READ ID Act. They also ran an 
op-ed by a college professor who disagrees with the READ ID Act.
  I want to thank the editors of that paper for being sure that both 
sides were represented on this issue. That is what every newspaper 
should strive for: equal time and let the readers decide.
  As I pointed out in my op-ed, illegal immigration is clearly a matter 
of national security, and for too long States like Tennessee have known 
and done nothing about the ease with which illegal aliens are obtaining 
valid government IDs. I believe it is unacceptable. I think most 
Tennesseeans agree with me.
  When I was in the State Senate in Tennessee, I fought to fix the 
problem, and now I am pleased that Congress and this Republican 
leadership have supported the READ ID Act. We are taking critically 
important steps toward tightening our licensing and identification 
policies to fight illegal immigration and terrorism.

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