I am writing to follow up my recent letter and provide you with an update regarding the Senate’s work on its immigration reform bill.
On June 7, the Senate Majority Leader, Senator Harry Reid, twice moved to end debate on the bill and proceed to a vote on it. I voted against the motion both times, recognizing that a number of our conservative Senators still had amendments they wished to offer.
Senator Reid has since agreed to bring the bill back to the Senate floor in the near future. When the Senate returns to the bill, it is expected to consider more than 20 additional amendments from both Republicans and Democrats, including an amendment I am drafting with Senator Lindsey Graham to substantially strengthen enforcement capabilities.
Few issues have generated the volume of calls, letters, and faxes to Senate offices as the immigration bill. The extended time for debate, coupled with the intense scrutiny that the legislation has received from the American people and the media, has helped to identify ways that the bill could be improved. And in response to concerns that our constituents have raised, Senators have already adopted a series of amendments – and additional amendments are on track to be approved when we return to the bill.
For example, during the course of the two-week Senate debate that has already occurred, we approved amendments to:
Declare English the national language of the United States, provide that English is the default language for government communication, and stipulate that no person has a right to have the government communicate in any language other than English unless specifically stated in applicable law (adopted 64 to 35);
Eliminate Earned Income Tax Credit benefits to Y or Z visa holders, unless and until they become legal permanent residents (adopted 56 to 41);
Enhance the border security and enforcement triggers in the bill, increasing the number of Border Patrol agents from 18,000 in the base bill to 20,000, the number of vehicle barriers along the border from 200 miles to 300 miles, and the number of detention beds from 27,500 to 31,500 (adopted by voice vote);
Prohibit Social Security benefits based on earnings from illegal employment (adopted by voice vote);
Clarify that the revocation of an alien’s visa or other documents is not subject to judicial review (adopted by unanimous consent);
Provide minimum sentences for aliens who reenter the United States after removal (adopted by unanimous consent); and
Express the sense of the Senate that undocumented immigrants receiving legal status must pay back taxes (adopted by unanimous consent).
Additional amendments are on track to be approved:
Many people have rightly criticized a provision of the bill requiring that a background check be completed within 24 hours for those seeking probationary status, a requirement that would be difficult, if not impossible, to meet.
I anticipate that an amendment will be adopted when we return to the bill to eliminate the 24-hour requirement and ensure that probationary status is not granted until a background check is completed, no matter how long that takes.
To counter concerns that visitors will continue to overstay their visas, we’ll adopt an amendment to increase mandatory minimum sentences for people who do so.
And, perhaps most importantly, in response to concerns that the President and Congress will not fulfill all of the promises of improved enforcement made in the bill, the bill will include an advance appropriation of $4.4 billion – an unprecedented step – to fund the next five years’ worth of critical border enforcement efforts.
Besides fighting to ensure that the resources are made available to enforce the law, I intend to pursue vigorous oversight to hold this administration’s (and the next administration’s) feet to the fire so that promises made are promises kept.
As I said in my previous correspondence, the reform bill is not what I would have written if I could have written it on my own, but it represents the first strong, bipartisan consensus for enforcing our laws and securing the border in a long time. Much of the existing law, enacted in 1986, is unenforceable – especially the requirement that employers verify eligibility for employment. To cite just one problem, employers have to rely on documents that are easily counterfeited. So it is not enough just to say “enforce the law” – existing law needs to be strengthened.
While I agree with many who say we should focus first on enforcement, the reality is that Republicans no longer control the House or Senate, and the chances that Democrats would allow an enforcement-only bill to be considered, let alone pass, are slim to none.
Some suggest delaying action altogether so that we can take our case to the American people and let them decide at the next election. But immigration won’t be the only issue voters consider, and it is certainly possible that Democrats will not only retain control of the House and Senate, but win the White House as well.
And you can bet that the conservative gains we’ve made in the current reform bill – significant new resources to secure the border and enforce the law in the interior, including at the workplace; the use of triggers to require that these enforcement resources are in place before other parts of the bill are implemented; an end to chain migration; and a temporary worker program that is truly temporary – would be lost with Democrats dominating Congress and the presidency.
Still others argue that no bill is better than this immigration bill. That’s a hard argument to make when illegal immigrants (over 10 percent criminals) continue to pour across our borders, burdening our schools, hospitals, and judicial systems, and crime and violence are rampant. Moreover, doing nothing really equates to silent amnesty for those who are here illegally.
Arizona is suffering because of illegal immigration. Every day that we delay action, an estimated 5,000 new illegal immigrants cross over our borders. Every day the situation continues to get worse, and something has to be done about it. Doing nothing is not an option. Existing law is not enforceable (employee work eligibility requirements, as I said, are a joke) – so, only by passing a new law that is enforceable can we end illegal immigration.
For further information, you may wish to review an
op-ed I wrote for the Arizona Republic further explaining the status of the bill,
a column from the Weekly Standard, as well as
a list of 10 key reforms included in the legislation. There is no political benefit to what I’ve tried to accomplish, only political criticism.
There is only one reason to do what I am trying to do here, and that is to solve a very serious problem – with serious repercussions for Arizona – in a way that helps restore confidence in our government and respect for the rule of law.
Please let me know if you have any comments or questions, or if you would like further updates on the status of the reform bill. Your support is important to me, and I will continue to work hard to earn it.
Sincerely,
