Speaker. in this 1st session of the 98th Congress. we have seen many obvious examples of a technique which the Democratic leadership uses very adroitly to prevent the House from taking up legislation that the American people expect us to consider. This technique is best described as: the Speaker giveth and the leadership taketh away. He giveth a vote on ERA and taketh away immigration. In no area has the leadership made better use of this ultimate power than in immigration reform. They gave five committees the chance to consider this vital piece of legislation but took away any opportunity for final consideration by the full House. Mr. Speaker. you have stated that there is no constituency for this legislation. We know differently in San Diego and Orange Counties in California. As many as 200.000 illegal immigrants cross the border into San Diego County every month. Of that number. only 50.000 are apprehended. If those statistics do not indicate that there is a desperate need for immigration reform what does? We must have the opportunity to debate fully all of the issues involved in this complex matter so that we can produce a workable solution to the very real immigration crisis. Since the leadership refuses to give us this opportunity. I urge my colleagues to sign the discharge petition and bring immigration reform before the House.
Keywords matched
illegal immigrants immigration