DESERET MORNING NEWS (Utah) October 2, 2006
Congress blasted for not passing major immigration bills By Deborah Bulkeley After much talk and little action, Congress adjourned last week without implementing any major immigration reform before the Nov. 7 election. The immigration debate came screeching to a halt this summer when lawmakers made little progress toward resolving differences between the House's measure to secure the borders and crack down on illegal immigrants and those who employ them; and the Senate bill, which would legalize many of the nation's estimated 12 million illegal immigrants. As of its adjournment Friday, Congress approved just one small enforcement measure — $1.2 billion to erect more fences and other barriers along the U.S.-Mexico border, plus money for jails to detain illegal immigrants and hire 1,500 more border agents. Republicans were hoping to have a much larger showpiece, a bill authorizing but not paying for fences along one-third of the 2,000-mile southern border. The House passed it two weeks ago. A slate of recently passed House enforcement measures, including a bill to eventually require that voters show proof of citizenship at the polls and another to allow local law enforcement officers to enforce immigration laws, failed to gain traction in the Senate. "The perception that has been painted mistakenly is that the United States government, our Congress is not delivering to the American people on a huge problem that's out there," Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., told the Associated Press. "We're active." U.S. Rep. Chris Cannon, R-Utah, said the border enforcement funding will help strengthen the border, even if it wasn't a complete solution. "This bill addresses one of the major concerns facing our country, the flow of illegal immigration," Cannon said. "This bill will help strengthen our borders, help enforce our laws, and provide funding for more border patrols." However, while Republicans in Washington touted the steps as important security measures, local politicians and activists expressed disappointment at apparent federal inaction on more substantive measures. Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. and Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano put together a resolution calling for bolstered border security and a guest-worker program. It was adopted earlier this year by the Western Governors' Association. Mike Mower, Huntsman's spokesman, said while the border security funding is "a needed first step," he expressed disappointment that more hadn't been done and hope that the issue would be taken up again after November's election. "We recognize a more significant reform effort needs to be adopted and implemented," Mower said. Kirk Jowers, executive director of the Hinckley Institute of Politics at the University of Utah, said immigration is one of many issues on which "this really was the do-nothing Congress." "I'm not too enthusiastic about the lame-duck session," Jowers said. "If the big, important substantive issues couldn't be addressed in the last two years, or sometimes in the last decade, I wouldn't put too much faith in the last few days in between elections and the next Congress. It's just hoping for too much." Some state lawmakers, frustrated with the lack of federal reform, are looking at what states can do to address the issue. "The federal government is continuing their abject failure in addressing the problem," said Sen. Curt Bramble, R-Provo. Bramble was sponsor of the controversial driving privilege cards for illegal immigrants and is part of the National Council of State Legislators' executive committee on immigration. While he didn't discuss specific legislation, Bramble said after the elections, the issue would likely resurface on the forefront at the state level. "What we're finding is that all the states have common concerns and common challenges," Bramble said. Rep. Glenn Donnelson, R-North Ogden, is considering reintroducing past attempts to repeal the driving privilege card and another law allowing undocumented immigrants to pay in-state tuition. Meanwhile, Rep. Karen Morgan, D-Salt Lake, is exploring the possibility of legislation similar to that passed by Colorado. That measure calls for, among other things, showing identification to access state services and for the state attorney general to sue the federal government over its inaction. "I'm very disappointed the federal government hasn't taken action on this issue," Morgan said. Tiani Coleman, co-founder of the National Immigration Advisory Committee online forum, said she has hope for lawmakers to look at comprehensive reform during the lame-duck session. "I am disappointed," she said. "Those summer months really could have been used to do the hard work of getting together and working out a solution. ... I think they will be able to have some tougher discussions after the election." Meanwhile, Alex Segura, director of the anti-illegal immigration group Utah Minuteman Project, said even small security measures would, if nothing else, send a message. But he said the measures passed Friday appeared to be "stop gap measures to keep people in office. If they're not going to do anything to help with homeland security ... they need to step down."
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