Speech #1090136076

Mr. President. I rise to discuss S. 2611. the immigration bill we are debating this week. It has been a difficult debate with several difficult votes. but I believe this is one of the most important pieces of legislation we will address this year. The status of immigrants in this country. including legal aliens. guest workers. and illegal aliens. has a profound impact on our economy. our labor force. and the quality of life of all of the Nations residents. Clearly. our immigration system in terms of both its punitive measures and its benefits offered is In need of overhaul. The bill before us is not perfect. but it is a realistic approach to dealing with an issue that is important to so many Americans. Rather than measures that sound good but are ineffective. this legislation is truly comprehensive immigration reform. It includes tough enforcement provisions directed at those who seek to come here illegally in the future and those who would hire illegal aliens. It contains provisions for guest workers that balance the needs of employers and the average American worker. and it offers a path to legalization to those who entered this country illegally but who have since been working hard and obeying the rules. One of the most important sections of this bill relates to enforcement. Clearly. the continuous flow of illegal immigrants across our southern border in particular in search of higher paying jobs in the United States strains our Nations labor market and resources such as hospitals and schools and law enforcement. I note that while illegal immigration has been a significant problem since the 1980s. the problems have only worsened in the past 6 years. The 9/11 Commission gave the Bush administration a grade of Cminus on border security. The administration has simply lost control of the border. In the past decade. between 700.000 and 800.000 illegal immigrants have arrived in this country annually. Over 70 percent of these individuals are from Mexico or South America or from Central America. During the same period from 1995 to 2005. the number of Border Patrol agents increased from 4.876 to 11.106. However. while the number of border agents increased dramatically during the Bush administration. the number of apprehensions at the border declined 31 percent from the last 4 years of the Clinton administration. In addition. approximately onehalf of the 11 million illegal aliens in this country live in the 46 nonborder States. yet the average apprehension rate during the Bush administration is 25.901 individuals per year in interior States away from the border. But apprehending individuals illegally crossing the border only partially solves the problem. The reason so many try to enter this country is the search for jobs. We must work to cut off the supply of jobs by making it too costly for employers to hire illegals. Again. this administration has performed poorly in this area. In fiscal year 2004. the last year in which data is available. the Justice Department only obtained 46 convictions for employer violations of illegal immigrant employment laws. Audits of employers suspected of utilizing labor have dropped from a peak of 8.000 per year under President Clinton to less than 2.200 in fiscal year 2003 under President Bush. The number of cases resulting in fines has declined from a peak of 900 under President Clinton to a total of 124 in fiscal year 2003.