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Immigration Tag

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 11, 2013 19 Comments

I have long predicted that the central, yet in some ways least debated, issue in the Gang of 8 bill was the pathway to citizenship. There was unanimity on the Democratic side, but not on the Republican side.  Democrats repeatedly threw down the gauntlet that no...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 09, 2013 20 Comments

I've flagged the pathway to citizenship (even more so than other forms of legalization) as the critical issue in the immigration debate. Granting citizenship to adults who came here illegally is horrible policy which historically has proven a huge carrot to increased illegal immigration regardless of...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on June 30, 2013 46 Comments
It's fairly well known that prior to his role in the Gang of 8, Marco Rubio was opposed to an across the board amnesty, and was critical of the 1986 amnesty. In this October 2009 interview, uncovered by Morgen Richmond (formerly of Verum Serum), Rubio takes a particularly hard line, insisting that "you cannot grant amnesty," and going on to explain how amnesty undermines the entire immigration system going forward. The interview is pretty devastating to Rubio's role in the Gang of 8 immigration bill which puts legalization and a path to citizenship ahead of enforcement of current laws and securing both the borders and the visa system (starting at 0:38):
The problem is the American people have no trust in the federal government, and they're not going to have a trust in the federal government until the federal government deals with the issue of illegal immigration. Until the federal government gives people confidence that the law is being enforced, that the border is being secured, that our visa process is no longer being abused. So I think step one is to enforce our existing laws. Secure our borders, fix our visa entry problem…deal with the illegal immigration problem first. When the American people have confidence that the federal government has done that then we can move to step two. And step two is create a legal immigration that works, that once again is a positive for America. You cannot grant amnesty. If you grant amnesty you will send a message that all you have to do is come into America illegally, stay here long enough, and we will let you stay. Number 2, you will destroy any hopes you have of having a legal immigration system that works. If the American people see us grant amnesty they will never again believe in legal immigration, they will never again support it. And that's wrong for our country, bad for our future. In fact in '86 when Reagan created an amnesty program, about 3 million people were granted amnesty. The result was that you had a bunch of people standing in line to enter legally who all claimed to be illegal because it was easier

Posted by William A. Jacobson on June 29, 2013 29 Comments

There will be intense pressure on the House Republicans to approve not just an immigration reform bill, but one that includes citizenship for adults who broke the law to come here. Amnesty is what this debate is all about. Democrats want it in the worst way, and...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on June 26, 2013 20 Comments

I'm going to let him explain. In full. https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/349965969613000706 Update: But not unrebutted: ...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on June 25, 2013 19 Comments

The amnesty charade which has taken place in the Senate with the visible advocacy of several Republican Senators -- Rubio, McCain, Graham, Corker, Hoeven -- and the assistance of 10 other Republican Senators who voted for cloture is just about the last straw. I'm not going...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on June 24, 2013 15 Comments
The Senate is debating the amended amnesty immigration bill. Technically it's the Leahy amendment as modified by the Hoeven-Corker amendment. A vote is expected around 5:30 p.m. Eastern. UPDATE -- the cloture motion passed by over 60 votes (still awaiting final count). (Apparently several Senators who would vote yes are delayed and not present, so Harry Reid is keeping to vote open to get as many Yes votes as possible to reach the artificial 70 goal.) -- FINAL COUNT 67-27, with 15 GOP yes votes: Corker Ayotte Chiesa [Christie appointee] Collins Flake Graham Hatch Heller Hoeven Kirk McCain Murkowski Alexander Rubio Wicker [live video removed] https://twitter.com/DLoesch/status/349300986961080321 https://twitter.com/robertcostaNRO/status/349300294989004802 https://twitter.com/trscoop/status/349297398411042817 https://twitter.com/DanaBordeaux/status/349294668154023937 https://twitter.com/allahpundit/status/349288583892443138

Posted by William A. Jacobson on June 24, 2013 27 Comments

That's what today's vote on the Corker amended immigration bill is about. The Senate bill cannot pass the House, there's been no public debate and consensus within the Republican Party on the key issues of legalization and citizenship for law-breakers, and most if not all of...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on June 23, 2013 25 Comments
Via NBC, Lindsey Graham is about to declare victory:
On Monday the Senate is scheduled to vote on a 1,200-page amendment offered by Sen. Bob Corker, R- Tenn., and Sen. John Hoeven, R- N.D., which has an initial cost of $46.3 billion – money to be used hire 20,000 Border Patrol agents and to deploy them along the Mexican border, as well as building add border fencing and setting up an electronic visa entry/exit system at all air and sea ports of entry where U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers are currently deployed. “The bill will pass,” Graham said on Fox News Sunday. “I think we are on the verge of getting 70 votes. That is my goal. It's always been my goal. We are very, very close to 70 votes. The Hoeven-Corker Amendment I think gets us over the top.”

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But don't think this will gain any love for Republicans: https://twitter.com/allahpundit/status/348814113075511296 Via The Hill:
A senior Democratic senator predicted Sunday there could be massive demonstrations in Washington if House Republicans try to block a bill to grant legal status to millions of immigrants. Sen. Charles Schumer (N.Y.), the lead Democratic sponsor of the Senate immigration reform bill, said House Republicans would likely spark massive civil rights rallies if they try to quash measures to create a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants already in the country. This has the potential of becoming the next major civil rights movement. I could envision in the late summer or early fall if Boehner tries to bottle the bill up or put something in without a path to citizenship — if there’s no path to citizenship, there’s not a bill — but if he tries to bottle it up or do things like that, I could see a million people on the Mall in Washington,” Schumer said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

Posted by William A. Jacobson on June 18, 2013 17 Comments

Shall I hear more, or shall I speak at this? Video via Hot Air: But wait, Senate rejects border fence: Senators on Tuesday rejected building the 700 miles of double-tier border fencing Congress authorized just seven years ago, with a majority of the Senate saying they didn’t want...

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