Here We Go Again: Guestworker Amnesty Program Back on the Table
Just weeks after midterm elections, the Bush administration, Republican policy makers, and some editorial writers are already gearing up for another push to grant amnesty to Mexican illegal aliens. While careful to characterize the proposal as a "guestworker" program, there can be no mistaking the amnesty that is intended.
Tony Garza, the new U.S. ambassador to Mexico, floated the opening trial balloon last week. Garza told reporters in Mexico City that reaching an accord legalizing the status of illegal aliens from Mexico remains a Bush administration priority. The new Bush plan, Garza said, could offer legalized residency to as many as 15 percent of the illegal aliens who have been in the U.S. for more than 10 years. He anticipates that Congress will debate this matter as soon as the economy improves.
Over the weekend at the Republican Governors' meetings in California, Governor Bill Owens (R-CO) defended Bush's amnesty policies, stating, "It was never defined as amnesty for illegals so much as moving back to legalized work programs." On Monday morning, an editorial by Executive Editor Morton Kondracke of Roll Call, the influential Capitol Hill newspaper, warned Congressional Republicans about losses in Hispanic voter support unless immigration policies are "reformed."
While President Bush has yet to confirm these statements or release details of such a plan, the fact that his advisors believe re-election in 2004 depends heavily on the Hispanic vote, and his past push to grant amnesty to some 3 million illegal aliens from Mexico, indicates that this plan is real indeed.
We will keep you informed of further developments on the guestworker amnesty issue, as they are sure to arise in the near future.
Good News for the New Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
Asa Hutchinson to Lead Immigration Bureau in New DHS
Immediately after signing legislation establishing a new Department of Homeland Security into law, President Bush announced that Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Asa Hutchinson, a former House member, will be nominated to serve as undersecretary for the new Bureau of Border and Transportation Security. During his years in the House of Representatives, Hutchinson established a strong record favoring enforcement of laws against illegal immigration, opposition to mass legal immigration, and opposition to amnesties of any kind.
The new Bureau of Border and Transportation Security will be in charge of the Border Patrol, investigations and inspections of would-be immigrants, and all other immigration enforcement functions currently performed by the INS.
Michael Garcia Named INS Acting Commissioner
President Bush has named Michael Garcia to serve as Acting Commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) following the departure of INS Commissioner James Ziglar on November 30. Garcia will oversee the integration of the INS into the DHS. Garcia has served as Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement at the Department of Commerce since August 2001. Previously he worked as a federal prosecutor in the Southern District of New York. During that period, he handled terrorism-related cases, including the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.
With very little else known at present about Garcia's background or posture on immigration issues, his experience as a prosecutor of terrorists is promising. Hopefully, this experience has given him an appreciation for the inherent connection between uncontrolled immigration and the threat to homeland security. Attorney General John Ashcroft said Garcia "will lead tough enforcement of our immigration laws to protect Americans from terrorism and secure our homeland."
Posted by Suzanne at November 26, 2002