RSS
Home
Obama begins immigration reform process
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Immigration reform has been a goal since the Reagan administration. Legislation passed by Reagan and Clinton that aimed to deal with the problem failed. George W. Bush tried to pass comprehensive reform during his second term, but was foiled by his own party, which protested the plan to provide a path to citizenship for the 12 million illegal aliens living in the U.S. Now it is Barack Obama's turn to try. With Democratic control of the Oval Office, House, and Senate (as well as Republican concerns about losing the Hispanic vote) the stars seem aligned for breakthrough legislation. However, Rahm Emanuel - White House Chief of Staff - recently said that there aren't enough votes to get a bill passed this year. This isn't stopping Obama from beginning the process however; yesterday 20 Senators and House Representatives joined Obama at the White House for a conversation on immigration reform. Aides to the president said the meeting was intended to "launch a policy conversation by having an honest discussion about the issues and identifying areas of agreement and areas where we still have work to do." Specific areas of contention include a path to citizenship for current illegals, a national identity card, and a guest-worker program to bring in unskilled, low-cost labor.
Immigration reform is important fom a national security standpoint because Congress will likely include measures to further secure the border with Mexico. This is a must-have in order to get Republican support for the bill and will likely attract strong Democratic support if drug violence continues to spill over the border and the illegal immigration rate picks up once the economy improves.
Immigration reform is just beginning what will be a year-long or multi-year process. Stay tuned for future updates!
Related Articles:
Comments
