Immigration Control

- U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) released a list of 20 loopholes in the comprehensive immigration bill today which reveals that the bill is fatally flawed and will not establish a functioning immigration system in the future.

The list of loopholes includes flaws effecting border security, chain-migration and assimilation policies. The list exposes the lack of serious attention given to ensuring that the legislation fixes America's failed immigration system. "I am deeply concerned about the numerous loopholes we have found in this legislation. They are more than technical errors, but rather symptoms of a fundamentally flawed piece of legislation that stands no chance of actually fixing our broken immigration system," Sessions said. "Many of the loopholes are indicative of a desire not to have the system work."For example, one loophole in the "enforcement trigger" fails to require the U.S. VISIT system - the biometric border check-in/check-out system established by Congress in 1996, but never implemented - to be fully functioning before new worker or amnesty programs begin. Without the system in place, the U.S. has no method of ensuring that workers and their families do not overstay their visas.

Another flaw in the legislation prevents the benefits of merit-based immigration from taking full effect until 2016. Until then, chain migration into the U.S. will actually triple, compared to a disproportionately low increase in skill-based immigration. As a result, the merit-based system in the bill is only a shell of what it should have been.A third loophole in the bill allows immigrants to avoid demonstrating a proficiency in English for more than a decade. Illegal aliens are not required to learn English to receive full "probationary benefits" of citizenship. Passing a basic English test is only required for the third Z-visa renewal, twelve years after amnesty is granted. Sessions will highlight many of the loopholes contained in the list this week during Senate debate on the immigration bill.

A full list of the 20 loopholes is below...20 Loopholes in the Senate Immigration Bill

Loophole 1 - Legal Status Before Enforcement: Amnesty benefits do not wait for the "enforcement trigger." After filing an application and waiting 24 hours, illegal aliens will receive full "probationary benefits," complete with the ability to legally live and work in the U.S., travel outside of the U.S. and return, and their own social security card. Astonishingly, if the trigger is never met and amnesty applications are therefore never "approved," the probationary benefits granted to the illegal alien population never expire, and the new social security cards issued to the illegal alien population are not revoked. [See pp. 1, 290-291, & 315].

Loophole 2 - U.S. VISIT Exit Not In Trigger: The "enforcement trigger," required to be met before the new temporary worker program begins, does not require that the exit portion of U.S. VISIT system - the biometric border check-in/check-out system first required by Congress in 1996 that is already well past its already postponed 2005 implementation due date - to be in place before new worker or amnesty programs begin. Without the U.S. VISIT exit portion, the U.S. has no method to ensure that workers (or their visiting families) do not overstay their visas. Our current illegal population contains 4 to 5.5 million visa overstays, therefore, we know that the U.S. VISIT exit component is key to a successful new temporary worker program. [See pp. 1-2].

Loophole 3 - Trigger Requires No More Agents, Beds, or Fencing Than Current Law: The "enforcement trigger" does not require the Department of Homeland Security to have detention space sufficient to end "catch and release" at the border and in the interior. Even after the adoption of amendment 1172, the trigger merely requires the addition of 4,000 detention beds, bringing DHS to a 31,500 bed capacity. This is far short of the 43,000 beds required under current law to be in place by the end of 2007, or the additional 20,000 beds required later in the bill. Additionally, the bill establishes a "catch, pay, and release" program. This policy will benefit illegal aliens from countries other than Mexico that are caught at the border, then can post a $5,000 bond, be released and never show up for deportation hearings. Annual failure to appear rates for 2005 and 2006, caused in part by lack of detention space, doubled the 2004 rate (106,000 - 110,000 compared with 54,000). Claims that the bill "expands fencing" are inaccurate. The bill only requires 370 miles of fencing to be completed, while current law already mandates that more than 700 miles be constructed [See pp. 1-2, & 10-11, and EOIR's FY2006 Statistical Yearbook, p. H2, and The Secure Fence Act of 2004].

Loophole 4 -- Three Additional Years Worth of Illegal Aliens Granted Status, Treated Preferentially To Legal Filers: Aliens who broke into the country illegally a mere 5 months ago, are treated better than foreign nationals who legally applied to come to the U.S. more than two years ago. Aliens who can prove they were illegally in the U.S. on January 1, 2007, are immediately eligible to apply from inside the U.S. for amnesty benefits, while foreign nationals that filed applications to come to the U.S. after May 1, 2005 must start the application process over again from their home countries. Last year's bill required illegal aliens to have been here before January 7, 2004 to qualify for permanent legal status. [See pp. 263, 282, & 306].

Loophole 5 - Completion of Background Checks Not Required For Probationary Legal Status: Legal status must be granted to illegal aliens 24 hours after they file an application, even if the aliens have not yet "passed all appropriate background checks." (Last year's bill gave DHS 90 days to check an alien's background before any status was granted). No legal status should be given to any illegal alien until all appropriate background checks are complete. [See pp. 290].

Loophole 6 - Some Child Molesters Are Still Eligible: Some aggravated felons - those who have sexually abused a minor - are eligible for amnesty. A child molester who committed the crime before the bill is enacted is not barred from getting amnesty if their conviction document omitted the age of the victim. The bill corrects this loophole for future child molesters, but does not close the loophole for current or past convictions. [See p. 47: 30-33, & p. 48: 1-2]

Loophole 7 - Terrorism Connections Allowed, Good Moral Character Not Required: Illegal aliens with terrorism connections are not barred from getting amnesty. An illegal alien seeking most immigration benefits must show "good moral character." Last year's bill specifically barred aliens with terrorism connections from having "good moral character" and being eligible for amnesty. This year's bill does neither. Additionally, bill drafters ignored the Administration's request that changes be made to the asylum, cancellation of removal, and withholding of removal statutes in order to prevent aliens with terrorist connections from receiving relief. [Compare §204 in S. 2611 from the 109th Congress with missing §204 on p. 48 of S.A. 1150, & see missing subsection (5) on p. 287 of S.A. 1150].

Loophole 8 - Gang Members Are Eligible: Instead of ensuring that members of violent gangs such as MS 13 are deported after coming out of the shadows to apply for amnesty, the bill will allow violent gang members to get amnesty as long as they "renounce" their gang membership on their application. [See p. 289: 34-36].

Loophole 9 - Absconders Are Eligible: Aliens who have already had their day in court - those subject to final orders of removal, voluntary departure orders, or reinstatement of their final orders of removal - are eligible for amnesty under the bill. The same is true for aliens who have made a false claim to citizenship or engaged in document fraud. More than 636,000 alien fugitives could be covered by this loophole. [See p. 285:19-22 which waives the following inadmissibility grounds: failure to attend a removal proceeding; final orders of removal for alien smuggling; aliens unlawfully present after previous immigration violations or deportation orders; and aliens previously removed. This appears to conflict with language on p. 283:40-41. When a direct conflict appears in a statute, the statue is interpreted by the courts to the benefit of the alien.].

Loophole 10 - Learning English Not Required For A Decade: Illegal aliens are not required to demonstrate any proficiency in English for more than a decade after they are granted amnesty. Learning English is not required for an illegal alien to receive probationary benefits, the first 4-year Z visa, or the second 4-year Z visa. The first Z visa renewal (the second 4-year Z visa) requires only that the alien demonstrate an "attempt" to learn English by being "on a waiting list for English classes." Passing a basic English test is required only for a second Z visa renewal (the third 4-year Z visa), and even then the alien only has to pass the test "prior to the expiration of the second extension of Z status" (12 years down the road). [See pp. 295-296].

Loophole 11 - Earned Income Tax Credit Will Cost Taxpayers Billions In Just 10 Years: Current illegal aliens and new guest workers will be eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit, a refundable tax credit designed to encourage American citizens and legal permanent residents to work. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that this loophole will cost the U.S. taxpayer up to $20 billion dollars in just the first 10 years after the bill's enactment. To be consistent with the intent of the 1996 welfare reforms - which limited new immigrants from receiving public benefits until they had been legal permanent residents for five years - the bill should withhold EITC eligibility from amnestied aliens until they become legal permanent residents. Closing this loophole will save the taxpayers billions of dollars. [See p. 293 after S.A. 1190 was adopted, p. 307, p. 315, §606. All that is required for EITC eligibility is a social security number and resident alien status. Nothing in the bill's tax provisions limit EITC eligibility. The issuance of social security numbers to aliens as soon as they apply for amnesty will ensure they are able to qualify for the EITC.]

Loophole 12 - Affidavits From Friends Accepted As Evidence: Records from day-labor centers, labor unions, and "sworn declarations" from any non-relative (acquaintances, friends, coworkers, etc) are to be accepted as evidence that the illegal alien has satisfied the bill's amnesty requirements. This low burden of proof will invite fraud and more illegal immigration - even aliens who are not yet in the U.S. will likely meet this burden of proof. DHS will not have the resources to examine whether the claims contained in the "sworn declarations" of the alien's friends (that the alien was here prior to January 1, 2007 and is currently employed) are actually valid. [See p. 293: 13-16].

Loophole 13 - Taxpayer Funded Legal Counsel and Arbitration: Free legal counsel and the fees and expenses of arbitrators will be provided to aliens that have been working illegally in agriculture. The U.S. taxpayer will fund the attorneys that help these individuals fill out their amnesty applications. Additionally, if these individuals have a dispute with their employer over whether they were fired for "just cause," DHS will "pay the fee and expenses of the arbitrator." [See p. 339:37-41, & p. 332: 37-38.]

Loophole 14 - In-State Tuition and Student Loans: In-state tuition and other higher education benefits, such as Stafford Loans, will be made available to current illegal aliens that are granted initial "probationary" status, even if the same in-state tuition rates are not offered to all U.S. citizens. This would normally violate current law (8 U.S.C. §1623) which mandates that educational institutions give citizens the same postsecondary education benefits they offer to illegal aliens. [See p. 321: 8-31].

Loophole 15 - Inadequacy of the Merit System: The "merit system," designed to shift the U.S. green card distribution system to attract higher skilled workers that benefit the national interest, is only a shell of what it should have been. Though the merit system begins immediately, it will not increase the percentage of high skilled immigrants coming to the United States until 2016, 8 years after enactment. Of the 247,000 green cards dedicated to the merit based system each year for the first 5 years, 100,000 green cards will be reserved for low-skilled guest workers (10,000) and for clearing the current employment based green card backlog (90,000). From 2013 to 2015, the number of merit based green cards drops to 140,000, and of that number, 100,000 green cards are still reserved each year for low-skilled guest workers (10,000) and for clearing the current employment based green card backlog (90,000). Even after 2015, when the merit system really begins (in 2016) by having 380,000 green cards annually, 10,00 green cards will be reserved specifically for low skilled workers, and points will be given for many characteristics that are not considered "high-skilled." For example, 16 points will be given for aliens in "high demand occupations" which includes janitors, maids, food preparation workers, and groundskeepers. [See p.260: 25 - p. 261: 20, p. 262, & The Department of Labor's list of "occupations with the largest job growth" available at www.bls.gov/emp/emptab3.htm].

· Sessions pointed to shocking elements of the bill that were hidden deep in its text. These include, for example, that the employers of illegal aliens would be given an amnesty for cheating on their taxes, and that under the terms of the law the government would for all practical purposes have to take an illegal alien's word for it that he has been in the country illegally long enough to qualify for an amnesty.

· Sessions also pointed to some of the tremendous hidden costs of the bill, including the $500 billion in additional welfare payments it will cost American taxpayers in the period 10 to 20 years after its passage. Senators who vote for the bill today cannot credibly claim later they were unaware of the elements and consequences that Sen. Session's outlined in this speech.

"The legislation has an incredible number of problems with it. Some, as I will point out tonight, can only be considered deliberate. Whereas on the one hand it has nice words with good sounding phrases in it to do good things, on the second hand it completely eviscerates that, oftentimes in a way that only the most careful reading by a good lawyer would discover. So I feel like I have to fulfill my duty.

"I was on the Judiciary Committee. We went into this. We tried to monitor it and study it and actually read this 614-page bill, and I have a responsibility and I am going to fulfill my responsibility. I think the things I am saying tonight ought to disturb people. They ought to be unhappy about it. It ought to make them consider whether they want to vote for this piece of legislation that, in my opinion, should never, ever become law.

"I would also just point out I will be offering tomorrow, or soon, an amendment to deal with the earned-income tax credit situation that is raised by this legislation, focusing on the amnesty in the bill and what will happen after amnesty is granted, before they become a full citizen.

"The Congressional Budget Office has concluded that the earned-income tax credit will pay out to those who came into our country illegally $29 billion over 10 years. The earned-income tax credit has been on the books for some time. It is a good bit larger than most people think. The average recipient of it receives $1,700. Lower-income people get a larger amount. Over half the people who we expect will receive amnesty are without a high school degree. They are receiving lower wages. They will be the ones who will particularly qualify for this.

"This is a score that has been given to us by the group that is supposed to score it. $29 billion will be paid out. If they go all the way and become a citizen they will be entitled to this like any other citizen, and they will be entitled to get it under my amendment. But I do not believe we should award people who have entered our country illegally, submitted a false Social Security number, worked illegally. I do not believe we should reward them with $29 billion of the taxpayers' money. That is a lot of money. I will also be offering a budget point of order, I or one of my colleagues will, in the next day or so.

"We have been working on that. We asked for a report. The Congressional Budget Office has concluded that the budget point of order lies in the first 10 years of this bill. It also concludes that it lies under the long-term provisions of the budget points of order for expenditures in the outyears. They didn't give us those numbers, but they said, "without much work they didn't have to do much work" the numbers are going to be much worse in the outyears.

"It clearly would be a detriment to the Government and these figures would exceed the budget, and a budget point of order would lie.

"At the Heritage Foundation, Mr. Robert Rector, who is the expert who dealt with welfare, studied this. He was the architect of welfare reform who has done so much to improve America's welfare system and improve incomes for low-income families. It really worked beautifully. He was the architect of it.

"He says this bill represents the greatest increase in welfare in 35 years. With the provisions and benefits that will be in it, he estimates that year 10 through year 20, the cost could be $50 to $60 billion a year to the taxpayers because it takes some time for the people who are adjusting and becoming citizens and/or legal permanent residents to really begin to make the claims.

"CBO admits the numbers are going to surge in the outyears. He says it is $50 billion a year. If that is so, and he is not exaggerating the numbers, because that is based solely on the amnesty provisions, not the provisions that will allow 3 times to 4 times as many people to come into the country legally in the next 20 years as come in today, and "many of them will go on welfare because that whole system is not based on identifying people with skills and educational levels that would indicate they would be more than low-wage worker” so it could really be more than that. But $50 billion a year over 10 years is $500 billion. That is a half a trillion dollars, and that is why Mr. Rector said this legislation is a fiscal catastrophe.

"This is a man whose opinions and ideas and research this Congress, and particularly the Republicans, utilized to hammer away, time and time again, year after year, to get welfare reform. It finally happened. It worked just like he said. The predictions of disaster made against his recommendations proved to be false. He is saying that about this. So this is not a technical point of order. It represents an attempt to save the fiscal soundness of the budget of the United States.

"I want to take some moments here to deal with some problems with the legislation. The American people are suspicious of us. They were promised in 1986, after years of urging the Government, the President and the Congress, promised to fix our borders and end illegal immigration. In exchange for that they acquiesced and went along with amnesty in 1986. They said there were a million, 2 million here who would claim it. It turned out 3 million claimed amnesty after 1986. That ought to give us some pause about the projections that we would have. We have 11 million people here now and only 8 or so will seek amnesty under it. That ought to give us some pause there. It may well be above the number. So the American people are suspicious and they are dubious and they are watching us carefully, and they should.

"Let me tell you some of the things that are in the legislation that indicate a lack of respect for the American people, really. Some of these are some of the reasons I said the other day the Senate should be ashamed of itself, the way we are moving this bill. My staff, working up some of these comments, came up with a title "maybe at my suggestion 'Sneaky Lawyer Tricks' that are in the bill. I will let you decide if that is a fair description of what is in it. I will go down through some of the matters that are important. There are others I could complain about for which we will not have time.

"First, the legislation talks about title IV of the bill. That title IV of the [*S5031] bill defines the new H2-C program as a temporary guest worker program. Those are in big print in the bill: Temporary guest workers. That sounds like a temporary worker, doesn't it? It sounds like a guest, like somebody who stays in your bedroom for a weekend, a guest, temporary guest. Interesting, section 408 sets out the temporary guest worker visa program task force. So a little further down it has what is called a temporary guest worker visa program task force. So you would think they are writing in this section, would you not, something about the task force. But this, down in that section, this task force establishes the number of H2C visas that may be issued annually and subsection (h) is where the writers of the bill hid the provision that actually transforms these so-called temporary workers into legal, permanent residents. OK? So all the big print, 'temporary guest workers', temporary guest worker task force, and then you read in that section down there that it effectively converts them from temporary workers to legal permanent residents, granting them a green card.

"It is tucked away in a title that has nothing to do with substance of that matter. So I am pleased that my staff and others who have been reading the bill have discovered that. It wasn't discovered early on in the process. Family members of H-2C visa holder need not be healthy. Under current law, aliens must prove that they are admissible and meet certain health standards. Many times, visa applicants must have a medical exam to show that they do not have a communicable disease. They have to be up-to-date on immunizations, and cannot have mental disorders. Spouses and children of H-2C visa holders, however, are not required to have a medical exam before receiving a visa. I have an amendment to fix this that I hope is accepted.
"The work requirement for a blue card can be satisfied in a matter of hours. Under the AgJOBS component of the substitute, illegal alien agricultural workers who have worked 150 workdays in agriculture over the last 2 years will receive a blue card, allowing them to live and work permanently in the U.S. However, because current law defines an agricultural workday as 1 hour of work per day the bill language restates that definition on page 397 'an alien who has worked for as little as 150 hours' there are 168 hours in a week” in agriculture over the last 2 years will qualify for a blue card.

"Blue card aliens can only be fired for just cause, unlike an American citizen worker who is likely under an employment at will agreement with the agricultural employer. No alien granted blue card status may be terminated from employment by any employer during the period of blue card status except for just cause. Because blue card aliens are not limited to working in agriculture, this employment requirement will follow the alien at their second and third jobs as well.

"The bill goes as far as setting up an arbitration process for blue card aliens who allege they have been terminated without just cause. Furthermore, the bill requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to pay the fee and expenses of the arbitrator. American citizens do not have a right to this arbitration process, why are we setting up an arbitrationprocess for blue card aliens paid for by the American taxpayer.

"Regarding free legal counsel, the AgJOBS amendment goes further than paying for arbitrators, it also provides free legal counsel to illegal aliens who want to receive this amnesty. The AgJOBS amendment specifically states that recipients of 'funds under the Legal Services Corporation Act' shall not be prevented 'from providing legal assistance directly related to an application for adjustment of status under this section.'

"Interestingly, page 414 of the bill requires the alien to have an attorney file the application for him. Not only will AgJOBS give amnesty to 1.5 million illegal aliens, it would have the American taxpayer pay the legal bills of those illegal aliens. This is unbelievable and unacceptable. We should not be rewarding illegal aliens who break our laws

"Under this bill a temporary worker is eligible for a green card if they, in part, maintained their H-2C status. In order to maintain this status the 'temporary' worker may not be unemployed for a period of 60 continuous days. This means that a temporary worker only has to work 1 day in every 59 days to maintain status. This employment requirement only requires that they work about 1 day every 2 months.

"In this bill, an alien who has been here between 2 and 5 years is not eligible for asylum if they have persecuted others on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. However, an alien here more than 5 years who has persecuted others on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion gets amnesty under this bill. There is no specific ineligibility for such conduct.

"Since it is included under the 'mandatory deferred departure' section, a court will interpret this to mean we purposefully left it out of the 'earned amnesty.' I cannot imagine why the drafters of this bill would allow persecutors to negotiate this.

"The bill's future flow ' 'guest worker' program in title IV leaves no illegal alien behind' it is not limited to people outside the United States who want to come here to work in the future, but includes illegal aliens currently present in the United States that do not qualify for the amnesty programs in title VI, including aliens here for less than 2 years.

"Under the bill language, you can qualify for the new H-2C program to work as a low-skilled permanent immigrant, even if you are unlawfully present inside the United States today. The bill specifically says: In determining the alien's admissibility as an H-2C nonimmigrant . . . paragraphs (5), (6)(A), (7), (9)(B), and (9) (C) of section 212(a) may be waived for conduct that occurred before the effective date. . . .

"By waving these grounds of inadmissibility, the new H-2C program is specifically intended to apply to illegal aliens who were already removed from the United States and illegally reentered. The bill tells DHS to accept 'just and reasonable inference' from day labor centers and the alien' 'sworn declaration' as evidence that the alien has met the 'amnesty' work requirement.

Under the bill, the alien meets the 'burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that the alien has satisfied the [work] requirements' if the alien can demonstrate employment 'as a matter of just and reasonable inference.' An alien can present 'conclusive evidence' of employment in the United States by presenting documents from social security, IRS, employer, or a 'union or day labor center.'

"The bill then states that: It is the intent of Congress that the [work] requirement . . . be interpreted and implemented in a manner that recognizes and takes into account the difficulties encountered by aliens in obtaining evidence of employment due to the undocumented status of the alien. If these lax standards can't be met, the bill makes sure that the alien can get what they need by allowing them to submit 'sworn declarations for each period of employment.'

"Putting these together the alien must prove it is more likely than not that there is a just and reasonable inference that the alien was employed. I don't know what this means other than DHS will have to accept just about anything as proof of employment.

"Regarding in-State tuition for illegal aliens, current law provides that: [A]n alien who is not lawfully present in the United States shall not be eligible on the basis of residence within a State (or a political subdivision) for any postsecondary education benefit unless a citizen or national of the United States is eligible for such a benefit (in no less an amount, duration, and scope) without regard to whether the citizen or national is such a resident. The DREAM Act would eliminate this provision and allow illegal alien college and university students to be eligible for in-state tuition without affording out-of-state citizen students the same opportunity. Thus, the University of Alabama could offer in-state tuition to illegal alien students while requiring citizens residing in Mississippi to pay the much higher out-of-state tuition rates. Allowing all illegal aliens enrolled in college to receive in-state tuition rates means that while American citizens from 49 other states have to pay out-of-state tuition rates to send their kids to [*S5032] UVA, people who have illegally immigrated to this country might not. Out-of-state tuition rates range from 2 to 3-½ times the in-state resident tuition rate.

"Regarding Federal financial aid for illegal aliens, while the Pell grants provision was removed from the bill, Stafford student loans and work study remains in. Under title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, legal permanent residents and certain other eligible non-citizens are eligible to compete with American citizens for certain types of higher education assistance.

"The DREAM Act makes illegal aliens eligible for several types of higher education assistance offered under the Higher Education Act - including Stafford student loans and work study programs.

"There is another matter, another sleight of hand I suggest. Amnesty both for legal aliens who have been here for more than 5 years, and those in the next category who are here from 2 to 5 years, don't really require that those aliens have to be continuously present in the United States.

"That is what it says in plain language. It starts off that you have to be continuously present in the United States. But, once again, is that what it really means? The bill allows these aliens to depart and to return after a brief departure. This allows illegal aliens who broke our laws by entering the United States and who have left and returned illegally perhaps multiple times 'and each time violating our laws by entering the United States' to qualify for this amnesty. I am not sure how these departures and illegal entries can be considered innocent since the illegal aliens broke U.S. laws by reentering. But it will absolve them from any of these multiple violations. That is a huge loophole.

"This is even more important. An alien may not have had deep roots in our country. They may have spent a lot of their time away from our country. But they heard about this amnesty, and if they can get in the country, then they will say they have been here continuously, perhaps. Somebody says: No. We found out you were back home. He says: That was brief. I want my amnesty. We object. I am going to take you to court, or you prove it, or I say I have been here. That is what I say. It is going to be very difficult to prove that.

"There are provisions in the bill that deal with U.S. worker protections. The bill purports to protect U.S. workers from the flood of cheap labor that might occur by requiring employers to prove to the Department of Labor that good-faith efforts have been taken, first, to recruit U.S. workers for a job before they go out and hire someone from outside of our country. They ought to at least find out if there are American workers who want the job. Then they are supposed to notify the Secretary of Labor and the Department of Homeland Security when one of these H-2C workers is 'separated from employment.' I am quoting that 'separated from employment' requires notice.

"We heard defenders of the bill say: Well, if you are not continuously working, they will notify the Department of Labor and you have to leave the country. Have you heard that? You have to be continuously working, you can't be not working, or else you are not entitled to the benefits of this H-2C provision. The separation from employment notification is supposed to help the Department of Labor and Homeland Security know which people have been out of work, and if they are out of work under the bill for more than 60 days, their visas are supposed to be revoked.

"OK. That is supposed to be a provision that makes sure people who come here are really working. Sounds good. But under the provisions of the bill, the term 'separation from employment' you can find that on page 236. As defined, the term means virtually zero. As defined, 'separation from employment' is anything other than discharged for inadequate performance, violation of workplace rules, cause, voluntary departure, voluntary retirement, or expiration of a grant or contract. Furthermore, it does not include those situations where the worker is offered 'even if they do not take it' another position by the same employer. Is that what I just read to you?

"It is hard to believe 'that you are supposed to notify them, except you don't need to notify them if they have left work, if they left work because they were discharged for inadequate performance, fired, or violation of workplace rules, or for just cause, or involuntary departure, involuntary retirement, or expiration of the contract. You don't have to notify them about those things. What would you notify them for, pray tell? I submit whoever wrote this bill - it was not the Senators, I can assure you of that - ought to be ashamed of themselves. That was a deliberate evisceration of what on the surface sounds like a legitimate provision, totally unenforceable.

"There is no way under this provision DHS or the Department of Labor will be provided information about people who have been terminated from employment. Protections for U.S. workers - that is one of the goals the bill says it reaches. Under the bill, employers must prove that hiring an H-2C worker will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of workers in the United States, and that they did not and will not cause separation from employment of a U.S. worker employed by an employer within the 180-day period beginning 90 days before this H-2C petition is filed.

Employers must also prove that they made good-faith efforts to recruit U.S. workers before they can hire an H-2C worker. That sounds good but, once again, things are not what they seem. As defined on page 263 of the bill, a U.S. worker includes not only citizens, it includes legal alien workers.

"And, amazingly, it also includes aliens who are 'otherwise authorized under this act to be employed in the United States.'

In other words, this provision provides protection for those who have been given legal status under amnesty, over and above, and provides them the same protection we provide to American citizens who are supposed to be given some protection against the flood of foreign labor. You have heard the deal. You have heard it said that the people who come to get amnesty - this is almost humorous - have got to pay their taxes. That is part of some sort of punishment. They make it sound like, in some way, you earned the right to be forgiven of your crime by paying your taxes.

"Everybody is supposed to pay their taxes. For heaven's sake, we are all supposed to pay taxes. This is nothing but doing what you would expect any American to do. But under the bill, things are, once again, not quite what their sponsors have said, or what the language might lead you to believe. You have to read it carefully. Under the bill, an illegal alien who is getting amnesty only has to pay back taxes for the period of employment required in the INA, section 245(B)(A)(1)(d). This is on page 347 of the bill, if people would like to look. These are actually just 3 of the 5 years between April 5, 2001, and April 5, 2002.

"So the plain language of the bill doesn't require them to pay all their back taxes at all. They get an option to pick and choose which 3 years they want to pay their taxes. Presumably, they can forget and not pay the taxes for the high years. How silly is that? This is really important. I think most Americans are pretty sophisticated. They know how the system works and the massive numbers we are talking about 'the burden of proving payment of back taxes is on the Internal Revenue Service, pages 351 and 411. They have to prove it. How are they going to prove it? The IRS must prove that they owe the taxes. How will the IRS know if an illegal alien has worked off the books thereby avoiding paying any taxes? This is really an utter joke. It is a promotion put forth by those in support of the bill that I have heard repeatedly - that somehow it is supposed to make us believe that people have earned their right to be forgiven for violating the law, and they only have to pay back 3 of the last 5 years in taxes.

"What about American citizens? Do you think you can go down to Uncle [*S5033] Sam, Mr. President, and have 5 years of income and then be able to pick and choose which years you pay and you only pay 3 out of your last 5 years? Why don't we let every American citizen have this benefit? Why do we only give it to people who entered the country illegally? You tell me.

"What about background checks? The bill requires the Department of Homeland Security to do them on illegal aliens. That is going to be exceedingly difficult. They are required to do it within 90 days. They have to protect our homeland. They have to handle all these provisions. I don't think it can ever be done. That may sound like something important is going to happen, that all the people here illegally will have their backgrounds checked promptly, but the truth is that is not going to get done in that time frame.

"How about fines? Let me state who they want to fine. A Federal agent, trying to do his duty to enforce the law and investigate fraudulent information provided by an illegal alien in their amnesty application, for law enforcement purposes, what happens to them if they take the amnesty application and actually examine it and find out it is fraudulent? What do they do? The agent would be fined $10,000. That fine, I note, is five times the amount the alien is able to post, $2,000, to get his amnesty from his illegal acts. There is no reason in the world Federal law enforcement officers should be barred from investigating and utilizing amnesty applications to prosecute criminal activities in America.

"There is no reason this ought to be protected other than it looks to me that some clever lawyer has realized if they can get this in the bill people can file false amnesty applications all day and no one will ever be able to investigate. Isn't that horrible? That is what it looks like to me. Is that a sneaky lawyer trick? I ask you to make that judgment. It does not sound good to me.

"Page 363 of the bill. Look it up. How about the employers? They get tax amnesty. Employers of aliens applying for adjustment of status 'amnesty' shall not be subject to civil and criminal tax liability relating directly to the employment of such an alien. That means a business that hired illegal workers does not have to pay the taxes they should have paid. Why? This encourages employers to violate our tax laws and not pay what they owe the Federal Government. They are excusing these employers and giving them amnesty from not withholding taxes. That is a very bad thing.

Every American business knows they have to pay their withholding taxes. What about two small businesses, one hiring illegal aliens not paying Social Security, not paying withholding to the Government, and paying some low wage, and another one across the street doing all the right things, hiring American citizens, perhaps paying higher wages and withholding money and sending his Social Security money to the Federal Government, what message does that send to the good guy, to give complete amnesty to the guy who has manipulated the system and gotten away perhaps with tens of thousands of dollars in benefits that his competitor did not get?

"You cannot play games with the law like this. You cannot pick and choose people and allow them unilaterally to not have to pay their taxes.

"What about illegal alien protection? The alien and their families who file applications for amnesty 'shall not be detained, determined inadmissible, deported, or removed until their applications are finally adjudicated, unless they commit a future act that renders them ineligible with amnesty.'

With tens of millions of applications, this amnesty, this provision essentially guarantees an illegal alien years of protection in the United States, even if they do not qualify for the amnesty. We hear they have to pay the fine, the $2,000 fine, but it is not due right away. For those in the amnesty program, illegal aliens are supposed to pay a fine of $2,000. However, the way the bill is written, many illegal aliens may not have to pay the fine for 8 years. The bill says that the $2,000 fine has to be paid 'prior to adjudication.' It is not required at the first. If it is left the way it is, the illegal alien can live, work and play in our country and not pay a cent of his fine for years.

"Perhaps they may even decide they do not want to pay it at all. This puts a financial burden on local taxpayers for the health, education, and the infrastructure costs that are not reimbursed for about 5 or 10 years. There are a number of other items. However, it is late; I will make these remarks part of the Record and will not belabor these points.

"It is clear the people who drafted this legislation had an agenda and the agenda was not to meet the expectations of the American people. The agenda was to create a facade and appearance of enforcement, an appearance of toughness in some instances. When you get into the meat of the provisions and get into the bill and study it, tucked away here and there are laws that eviscerate and eliminate the real effectiveness of those provisions.

"It was carefully done and deliberately done. This is a bill that should not become law. It is a bill that will come back to be an embarrassment to our Members who have supported it. I wish it were not so. I know how these things happen.

"You do not always have time to do everything you want to do. You try to do something you think is right, but ultimately in a bill as important as this one that has tremendous impact on the future of our country and our legal system and our commitment to the rule of law, we ought to get it right. We ought not to let this one slide by. It is not acceptable to say, let's just pass something and we will send it to the House and maybe the House of Representatives will stand up and stop it and fix it.

"That is not acceptable for the great Senate of the United States. I strongly believe we are not ready to pass the bill. We are not ready to give it final consideration. I strongly believe it is a horrendous violation of the Committee on the Budget and that it is, as Mr. Rector said, a fiscal catastrophe if passed, and as such we ought not to waive the Budget Act but pull the bill from the floor and fix it. I yield the floor."

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Rep. J.D. Hayworth, Arizona Republican, ripping apart the White House's immigration policy, National Review Online

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Professor Thomas Sowell made this observation:

Sen. Jeff Sessions Explains His Opposition to Final Passage of the Senate Immigration Bill
Thursday, May 25, 2006

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) today announced his intention to vote against final passage of the immigration bill. As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sessions will serve on the conference committee that will try to reconcile the separately passed Senate and House immigration bills.

“The American people were counting on us to secure our borders and restore the rule of law to our immigration system,” Sessions said. “Unfortunately, the United States Senate today let the American people down by passing a deeply flawed bill that gives the illegal alien population every benefit this nation can bestow, and increases future legal immigration levels by three to five times the current level. Additionally, the immigration levels for the future ensure that 70 percent of the large influx will be admitted without having to meet any educational, skill or language requirements.”

According to Sessions, the fatal flaws are numerous:

• Border Security: Although I was glad the Senate approved my amendment to increase the amount of fencing and vehicle barriers along our southwest border, the border is not secured by this bill. The border security and immigration enforcement provisions will have to be paid for in the future, not just authorized by this bill. An “enforcement trigger” amendment, which I voted for, but which failed to pass, was needed to ensure that the American people are not promised immigration enforcement that is never delivered.

• Workplace Enforcement: Workplace enforcement is an integral component of effective immigration enforcement. Today, no mandatory workplace verification system exists, and employers know they can get away with hiring illegal workers. This must end. The provisions in the bill that attempt to address the problems in the workplace are deficient and will not work.

• Amnesty: If amnesty means anything, it means giving illegal aliens every benefit that legal immigrants receive. Under the bill, a vast majority of the illegal alien population will be given every benefit our nation can bestow on its citizens, including participation in the Social Security System based on their illegal work histories.

• Temporary Worker Program is Not Temporary: Though it has been sold as a ‘temporary guest worker program’ there is nothing ‘temporary’ about the new guest worker program created by this bill. Almost every new ‘temporary guest worker’ who comes in the future will be eligible for legal permanent resident status (a green card) and put on the path to citizenship.

• Future Immigration Levels: The bill increases future legal immigration at least three times the current level. Instead of 18.9 million people coming in the next 20 years, more than 66 million people will immigrate over the same time period. That number is too high.

• The Needs of the United States: The bill does nothing to ensure that our nation’s future immigration policy reflects our country’s needs. Developed nations have reformed their immigration policies to prioritize high-skilled immigration over large scale low-skilled and extended family chain migration. This bill prioritizes low-skilled and chain migration over skill-based immigration, an approach we should reject.

• Fiscal Impact: No official study has been conducted on the huge adverse financial impact this bill will create in the out years. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the bill will increase direct spending by $54 billion and discretionary spending by $64 billion in just the first 10 years. The Heritage Foundation projects the bill will increase long-term federal spending by at least $50 billion a year. These are staggering numbers that indicate that this bill might have costs as great as half a trillion dollars in any future 10-year period. This bill is a huge, monumental budget buster.

http://www.opinionjournal.com/

THE GOLDEN DOOR

Enforceable, Sustainable, CompassionateOn immigration, it's time to get real.


BY MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG

Wednesday, May 24, 2006 12:01 a.m.

In every decade there is a critical domestic issue that shapes our political life for decades to come. In the 1960s, it was civil rights; in the 1970s, the Watergate crisis; in the 1980s, crime and drugs; and in the 1990s, welfare dependency. Today, it is immigration.

In New York City, 500,000 of our more than three million immigrants are here illegally. Although they broke the law by illegally crossing our borders or overstaying their visas, our economy would be a shell of itself had they not, and it would collapse if they were deported. The same holds true for the nation. Yet in a post-9/11 world, the federal government can no longer wink at illegal immigration. To ensure our national security and keep our economy growing, it is essential that immigration reform embody four key principles:

1. Reduce Incentives. As a business owner, I know the absurdity of our existing immigration regulations all too well. Employers are required to check the status of all job applicants, but not to do anything more than eyeball their documents. In fact, hypocritically, employers are not even permitted to ask probing questions. As a result, fake "green cards" are dime a dozen, and illegal immigrants can easily qualify for jobs.

It is encouraging that a growing number of Democrats and Republicans in Congress recognize the need for a federal database that will allow employers to verify the status of those applying for jobs. The database must identify all job applicants in America based on documentation that cannot be corrupted--fingerprints or DNA, for example. (Social Security cards are just too easy to falsify.) In addition, there must be stiff penalties for businesses that fail to conduct checks or ignore their results. Holding businesses accountable is the crucial step, because it is the only way to reduce the incentive to come here illegally. Requiring employers to verify citizenship status was the promise of the 1986 immigration reform law, but it was an empty promise, never enforced by a federal government pressured to look the other way while workers were exploited. This allowed illegal immigration levels to overwhelm our border control. We must not make the same mistake again.

2. Increase Lawful Opportunity. Baby boomers are starting to retire, America's birthrate continues to slow, and our visa quotas remain too low. As a result, we need more workers than we have, and that's exactly why so many people want to come here. In most cases, those here illegally are filling low-wage, low-skill jobs that Americans do not want. Recent studies put the lie to the old argument that immigrants take jobs away from native-born Americans and significantly depress wages. Global economic forces are responsible for the declines in the real wages of unskilled workers and occur regardless of whether immigrants are present in a community. Moreover, any slight wage decline is more than offset by substantial increases in productivity.

To keep people and businesses investing in America, we need to ensure that we have workers for all types of jobs. That means increasing the number of visas for overseas manual workers, who help provide the essential muscle and elbow grease we need to keep our economy running, as well as the number of visas for immigrant engineers, doctors, scientists and other professionally trained workers--the brains of tomorrow's economy. And it means giving all of them, as well as foreign students, the opportunity to earn permanent status, so they can put their knowledge and entrepreneurial spirit to use for our country. Why shouldn't we reap the benefits of the skills they have obtained here? If we don't allow them in, or we send them home, we will be sending the future of science--and the jobs of tomorrow--with them.

3. Reduce Access. Controlling our borders is a matter of urgent national security. As President Bush recognizes, in some areas, particularly in border towns, additional fencing may be required; in open desert areas, a virtual wall--created through sensors and cameras--will be far more effective. However, even after doubling their numbers, border security guards will remain overwhelmed by the flood of people attempting to enter illegally. Only by embracing the first two principles--reducing incentives and increasing lawful opportunity--will the border security so desired by the House become a manageable task.

4. Get Real. The idea of deporting 11 million people, nearly as many as live in the entire state of Illinois, is pure fantasy. It is physically impossible to carry out, though if it were attempted, it would devastate both families and our economy. The Senate's tiered approach requiring that some people "report to deport" through guest worker programs--while leaving their spouses, children and mortgages behind--is no less ridiculous. If this approach becomes law, there can be little doubt that the black market for false documentation would remain strong and real enforcement impossible.

There is only one practical solution, and it is a solution that respects the history of our nation: Offer those already here the opportunity to earn permanent status and keep their families together, provided they pay appropriate penalties. For decades, the federal government has tacitly welcomed them into the workforce and collected their income and Social Security taxes, which two-thirds of undocumented workers pay. Now, instead of pointing fingers about the past, let's accept the present for what it is by bringing people out of the shadows, and focus on the future by casting those shadows aside, permanently.
As the debate continues in Washington, it is essential that Congress recognize the need for an immigration policy that is enforceable, sustainable and compassionate--and that enables the American economy to thrive in the 21st century. But if one principle is abandoned, we will be no better off than we were after passage of the 1986 law. A successful solution to our border problems cannot rest on a wall alone; it must be built on a foundation strong enough to support it, and to support our continued economic growth and prosperity.

Mr. Bloomberg is mayor of New York.

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