Immigration debate set to heat up

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – With the 109th Congress set to convene today, members and lobbyists were revving up to debate two thorny immigration initiatives that strive toward seemingly contradictory ends.

The most sweeping proposals of 2005 are likely to be sounded out with President Bush as he seeks bipartisan support for a plan to grant temporary work cards to thousands of foreign nationals.

Bush put the plan on the back-burner after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, then brought it forward again at his final formal news conference of 2004.

Those in favor of tighter immigration restrictions say such a program would pander to employers looking for an abundant supply of low-wage workers while saddling the government with their health and education costs. They’re also concerned the proposal might extend beyond short-term permits by providing a path to permanent residence.

Bush was vague on the issue at the year-end news conference: “If somebody who is here working wants to be a citizen, they can get in line like those who have been here legally,” he said.

Rosemary Genks, director of government relations for NumbersUSA, which supports a stiffer immigration policy, said the guest-worker proposal fails to take into account a backlog of millions of residence petitions causing years of delays for many who are trying to come to the United States legally.

Immigrant advocates, on the other hand, see a chance to push for laws that would bring masses of vulnerable workers into a legal framework while freeing up border agents to target terror suspects.

Others argue that in the world’s increasingly global economy, where jobs and capital can cross oceans in the blink of an eye, U.S. immigration policy should allow for labor pools to move with similar ease.