- WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President
Bush unveiled an election-year proposal on Wednesday to let millions of
mostly Hispanic immigrants work legally in the United States in what would
be the biggest overhaul of U.S. immigration law in almost two decades.
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- The effort to court Hispanic-American voters and patch
frayed relations with Mexico faced an uncertain future on Capitol Hill,
where the guest worker program creating a three-year renewable temporary
work permit drew skepticism from Republicans and Democrats alike.
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- The Bush administration sought to balance the concerns
of politically important Hispanic groups seeking to legalize immigrants'
status and major employers who want workers for low-paying jobs. Others
worry about security and job competition amid a sea of illegal immigrants.
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- "We must make our immigration laws more rational
and more humane, and I believe we can do so without jeopardizing the livelihoods
of our American citizens," Bush said.
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- Bush telephoned Mexican President Vicente Fox to outline
the proposal, which the Mexican leader promptly welcomed as "an immigration
plan to clearly recognize the worth of the Mexican men and women who are
working in there in the United States."
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- MEETING MONDAY
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- Bush and Fox are to meet on Monday at a summit of the
Americas in Mexico. Ties between the two leaders grew frosty as immigration
reforms sought by Fox stalled after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the
United States.
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- Under Bush's plan, illegal immigrants now in the United
States would be allowed to stay for an initial three-year period if they
could prove they had jobs.
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- Many of the estimated 8 million to 14 million illegal
immigrants in the United States came from Mexico. America's 39 million
Hispanics are the largest U.S. minority group and a target of Bush's re-election
strategy in states such as Florida and California.
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- California's Republican governor, Austrian-born Arnold
Schwarzenegger, said the proposal was "the right approach."
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- But the AFL-CIO labor federation said Bush's proposals
would create an "underclass" of foreign workers and "exacerbate
the decline in job quality and job security for all workers."
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- Democrats said the proposal fell far short by failing
to ensure long-term illegal immigrants could remain permanently.
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- Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry of
Massachusetts said it "rewards business over immigrants by providing
them with a permanent pool of disenfranchised temporary workers who could
easily be exploited."
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- LOOMING ELECTION
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- Another Democratic candidate, Sen. Joseph Lieberman of
Connecticut, said Bush had made "an election-year conversion."
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- Some Republicans said that even the temporary permits
amounted to a reward for lawbreaking by people who immigrated illegally.
U.S. Rep. Thomas Tancredo, a Colorado Republican, called Bush's plan a
"step backward."
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- Under Bush's proposal, immigrants with three-year work
status could leave the country and return as needed, and renew their permits
for a number of times to be negotiated with Congress. But they would have
to return home unless they sought and received permanent status.
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- Bush said border security would increase as authorities
focused on preventing terrorism, and immigrant workers would enjoy greater
labor and legal protections.
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- He said he would also seek to increase the number of
slots for immigrants to become permanent residents and then citizens, and
would review citizenship tests to ensure they reflected a knowledge of
American "ideals."
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- But he said he remained opposed to giving illegal workers
a broad amnesty. "Citizenship must not be the automatic reward for
violating the laws of America," Bush said.
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- Hispanic organizations said it was about time Bush addressed
the issue after campaigning in 2000 for immigration reform. Immigration
law was last changed in 1986 when 2.8 million illegal immigrants were given
amnesty and allowed to stay in the United States.
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- "We fear this is political positioning and we really
want to see some sincere policy outcomes," said Michele Waslin, spokeswoman
for the National Council of La Raza, a Hispanic advocacy group.
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- © Reuters 2004. All Rights Reserved.
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