Posted on 07/02/2007 7:16:36 AM PDT by chicagolady
Praises Durbin and Obama on Leadership in Seeking Improvements
Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights: Release,
The Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR) is deeply disappointed with the Senate’s failure to cut off debate on the immigration reform bill, S. 1348. This evening, a cloture motion to limit further consideration of the bill fell short of the 60 votes needed to pass by a vote of 45-50. With the failure of the cloture motion and the prospect of endless debate on the bill, Majority Leader Harry Reid pulled the bill from the floor, and thus made passage of any immigration bill this year unlikely.
While ICIRR recognizes the flaws in the Senate proposal and worked to improve it, we also urged the Senate to move the bill forward and keep the legislative process moving. As the largest state-wide coalition of immigrant rights and community organizations in the state, ICIRR believes that true immigration reform must include the following elements: • simple and broad legalization for undocumented workers and families; • strong worker protections and a path to citizenship for future immigrant workers; • family reunification and continued preference for family based immigration; • preservation of due process and civil rights; and • fair treatment of students and agricultural workers as embodied in the DREAM Act and AgJobs legislation.
ICIRR has been troubled by the provisions that would replace most family immigration categories with a point system based on education and job skills, and by other provisions that limit the ability of new workers to gain legal status. Nevertheless, ICIRR and its member organizations believe that immigration reform is urgently needed, and that Congress and President Bush must not squander the opportunity they have this year to pass an immigration bill, before national attention starts focusing on the 2008 elections.
ICIRR thanks Sen. Richard Durbin and Sen. Barack Obama for their leadership in seeking improvements to the bill. Both Senators have sponsored or otherwise supported efforts to make the legalization process and guest worker program more realistic and workable, to preserve family-based immigration, and to uphold the civil rights of immigrants. Both Senators also supported today’s cloture motion. Throughout the Senate debate, they consistently showed their responsiveness to our state’s immigrant communities.
Despite this setback, the immigration issue is not going away. Our nation’s immigration system is in urgent need of reform, and President Bush and the Republican leadership must step up to ensure that there are enough votes from their side to join Democrats in enacting bipartisan reform. ICIRR will continue to work for just, humane, workable solutions that will bring the undocumented out of the shadows, restore order to our immigration system, and uphold our values as a nation of immigrants.
The Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights is a statewide coalition of 130 organizations dedicated to promoting the rights of immigrants and refugees to full and equal participation in the civic, cultural, social, and political life of our diverse society.
For more information, visit ICIRR’s website at www.icirr.org
friends of ELVIRA
I thought there were 53 votes against this turkey. Did Brownbeck switch again?
“Despite this setback, the immigration issue is not going away...” Yes, and it won’t go away until groups like this quit harboring, excusing and supporting people who break our laws, steal our identities, usurp our Social Security numbers and feed from the public trough. Imagine a group committed to the interests of bank robbers or car thieves demanding that Congress legalize their activities.
I think we should tell them that they can come here illegally and get on a path to citizenship when WE can go to their countries LEGALLY and become citizens.
Yes, tit for tat. But who would want to go live in their hell hole countries? That is the problem. All of the Third World and most of the rest of the world would come here to live in the wonderful country our Forefathers created if we would let them. Groups like this want to allow that to happen. They will not be satisfied until we in the U.S. are as poor and miserable as the Third World.
I’m with you, I dont want to live there. But any number of Americans retire to nice resort areas in various Central American countries. I have neighbors who will be retiring to Mexico as soon as they sell their house. Somewhere on the Western coast, I forget the name of the town.
ping
Demand a border fence! Build it NOW!! Beef up the border patrol and close our borders!
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Courtesy of a pro-amnesty group, no less!!
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