Rhino
05-26-2006, 11:33 AM
Rep. Sensenbrenner: House and Senate '180 Degrees Apart' on Immigration
Friday, May 26, 2006
WASHINGTON — The House author of a border security bill that triggered massive street protests stood firm Friday against amnesty for illegal immigrants and predicted tough negotiations with the Senate on compromise legislation.
The Senate passed its sweeping bill 62-36 Thursday after two weeks of debate and difficult votes that tested the strength of a coalition of bipartisan senators who supported the opportunity for U.S. citizenship that their bill would give most of the estimated 11 million to 12 million people who are in this country illegally.
"This will set up a very difficult House-Senate conference committee because the approaches taken by the House and Senate on this issue have been 180 degrees apart," said Rep. James Sensenbrenner, chairman of the Judiciary Committee and principal author of the more stringent House bill.
"Amnesty is wrong," he told a news conference.
President Bush said Thursday that the House "began a national dialogue" when it passed an immigration bill last year and he said he "looked forward to working together" with lawmakers to produce a bill he could sign.
He declined to answer a question later about whether he thought the House and Senate could succeed in finding a compromise for their disparate positions on the issue.
But he did say that an effective measure would protect U.S. borders, make employers responsible for people they hire, create a temporary worker program, deal with the illegal immigrants already in the U.S. and "honor America's great tradition of the melting pot."
Soon after passing their bill, senators challenged the House to move away from its enforcement-only prescription and toward something more in line with what Bush wants.........http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,197177,00.html
Friday, May 26, 2006
WASHINGTON — The House author of a border security bill that triggered massive street protests stood firm Friday against amnesty for illegal immigrants and predicted tough negotiations with the Senate on compromise legislation.
The Senate passed its sweeping bill 62-36 Thursday after two weeks of debate and difficult votes that tested the strength of a coalition of bipartisan senators who supported the opportunity for U.S. citizenship that their bill would give most of the estimated 11 million to 12 million people who are in this country illegally.
"This will set up a very difficult House-Senate conference committee because the approaches taken by the House and Senate on this issue have been 180 degrees apart," said Rep. James Sensenbrenner, chairman of the Judiciary Committee and principal author of the more stringent House bill.
"Amnesty is wrong," he told a news conference.
President Bush said Thursday that the House "began a national dialogue" when it passed an immigration bill last year and he said he "looked forward to working together" with lawmakers to produce a bill he could sign.
He declined to answer a question later about whether he thought the House and Senate could succeed in finding a compromise for their disparate positions on the issue.
But he did say that an effective measure would protect U.S. borders, make employers responsible for people they hire, create a temporary worker program, deal with the illegal immigrants already in the U.S. and "honor America's great tradition of the melting pot."
Soon after passing their bill, senators challenged the House to move away from its enforcement-only prescription and toward something more in line with what Bush wants.........http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,197177,00.html