Speech #1090120267

I thank the Senator. At some point I will be offering amendment No. 3220 and amendment No. 3221. I want to take this opportunity to explain those amendments as we are coming down to the moment of truth and what we are going to do on an immigration bill. It has been the position of this Senator that we have two goals to achieve. It is essential in immigration reform that we achieve both of these goals. One is the protection of our borders. not only for the purpose of immigration but also for the purpose of protection from terrorists infiltrating the country. The other goal is the protection of our economy. Where we have in effect American amnesty. as my colleague from Florida has already described. under the existing situation with 11 million illegal aliens or undocumented workers in this country and nothing has been done about itin effect. amnesty is the de facto situation. How do you accommodate the economic needs of major industries in this country with the workforce that they need and have 11 million undocumented workers come out of the shadows so that they can have a legal status? That is the balance that we are trying to achieve. On the one hand. border security. on the other hand. the provision of an economic workforce that will keep the economic engine of this country humming. I might say that three of the major industries that employ undocumented workers are three big industries in the Presiding Officers State and in my State of Florida that is. agriculture. the construction industry. and the service industry. particularly the travel and tourism industry which is very apparent in our States. Finding that right balance is what this is all about. What I want to do is offer a couple of amendments that will help us enhance our border security provisions more so than the existing committee bill that has come out of the judiciary. Specifically. what I would like to see based on the GAO report and also the inspector generals report. which both recommended that with the enhanced electronic surveillance and new kinds of technological devices such as unmanned aerial vehicles. that we integrate all of this in more of a comprehensive system that can talk to each other. For example. if we are talking about electronic sensors on a fence. the electronic signal goes off.