Graham: Boston Marathon bombings ought to prompt swifter action on immigration reform

Washington Post ^ | April 21, 2013 | Sean Sullivan

[Javeth]

The Boston Marathon bombings ought to spur even swifter action on immigration reform, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Sunday. “What happened in Boston … I think should urge us to act quicker, not slower, when it comes to getting the 11 million [illegal immigrants living in the U.S.] identified,” Graham said on CNN’s “State of The Union.” Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the brothers suspected in the bombings, are of Chechen origin and immigrated to the United States in 2002. Graham is part of the bipartisan “Gang of Eight” senators who have unveiled a sweeping immigration reform proposal. At the Senate Judiciary Committee’s first hearing on the proposal Friday, Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) urged his colleagues against rushing ahead on reform in light of the questions about the Boston Marathon bombings. “While we don’t yet know the immigration status of the people who have terrorized the communities in Massachusetts, when we find out, it will help shed light on the weaknesses of our system,” Grassley said. Sen. Dan Coats (R-Ind.) said Sunday that he agrees with Grassley. “We have a broken system, it needs to be reformed. But I’m afraid we’ll rush to some judgments relative to immigration and how it’s processed. So let’s do it in a rational way rather than an emotional way,” Coats said on ABC News’s “This Week With George Stephanopoulos.” Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y), a second member of the “Gang of Eight,” on Sunday warned opponents of the immigration bill not to use the Boston bombings as a tactic for stonewalling the legislation. “We are not going to let them use what happened in Boston as an excuse, because our law toughens things up,” Schumer said on “State of The Union.”

[savedbygrace]

“What happened in Boston … I think should urge us to act quicker, not slower, when it comes to getting the 11 million [illegal immigrants living in the U.S.] identified,”

Um, Senator, the two bombers WERE identified, well ahead of time. Identifying them did not prevent them from killing and maiming.

[blaquebyrd]

You said it! Why the RNC continues to allow this toe tapping toilet fairy to be the face of conservatism on this issue is way beyond me. Every time this, Paul Lynde impersonator mentions he served in my beloved Air Force I become physically ill. Message for the RNC and fawning media—please hide your cameras, they are catnip to Lyndsy and his partner John. Damn! We do have 98 other senators.

[RetSignman]

Columbia, S.C.—The South Carolina Conservative Action Alliance (SCCAA) today launched a statewide television, radio, and Internet ad campaign promoting the bipartisan immigration reform plan being crafted by U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham, Marco Rubio and others.

The commercials began airing today across South Carolina.

“The plan Senators Graham, Rubio and others are crafting is a conservative approach that – first and foremost – secures our borders,” said Ambassador David Wilkins, the SCCAA board chairman. “Illegal immigration has been one of the toughest problems facing our country. As a South Carolina-based organization, we are especially proud of Senator Graham’s leadership on this critical issue.”

Wilkins also stressed SCCAA supports E-Verify, the employment verification system which prevents the hiring of illegal immigrants. “South Carolina led the nation by placing an E-Verify requirement in state law. We are pleased to hear the plan Senators Graham and Rubio are advocating has an E-Verify mandate for the entire nation,” he said.

Kathy Bigham, a businesswoman and Republican activist in Rock Hill, S.C. who also serves on the SCCAA board, said conservatives back the new proposal because “it is definitely not amnesty.”

Added Bigham, “Once the borders are secured, those in America illegally would have a path to citizenship that forces them to pay a fine, pay taxes, pass a criminal background check, learn to speak English, and get in the back of the line. The whole process would take at least 13 years to complete, but it likely could take longer. That’s tough but fair.”

The South Carolina Conservative Action Alliance was established in 2010 as a nonprofit policy and grassroots organization that promotes conservative solutions for some of the nation’s most challenging problems.

If anyone wants to call and ‘thank’ Graham, the number is 864-250-1417...not that I would think of overwhelming their telephone system..

http://sccaa.accountsupport.com/sccaa-supports-bipartisan-plan-for-immigration-reform/.

You can listen or watch the desperation ad at the link above.