| BUSH'S IMMIGRATION PROPOSAL: COMPASSION OR POLITICAL RETHORIC? |
| Written by Maria Elena Salinas |
| Tuesday, January 13 2004 |
| |
| President George W. Bush did not go to the Summit of the Americas in Monterrey, México, empty-handed this week. He took with him a proposal for immigration reform that he hoped would help make his amigo Vicente Fox at least somewhat happy. It's not exactly the immigration accord they had hoped to reach before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, but it is a step in the right direction.
Bush presented details of the proposal in a speech on Wednesday at the White House. The plan calls for the creation of a guest-worker program that would allow foreigners to apply for jobs that American citizens and legal residents don't fill. Undocumented immigrants already living and working in the United States would qualify if they pass a background check. Workers would then have temporary legal status for up to six years, they would be free to travel back and forth to their country of origin, and they could apply for a green card.
The president was trying to play both sides of the immigration debate in the United States by pointing out that he is against blanket amnesty, that his plan would make the country safer and that the guest workers would have to return to their country after the six years. But the strategy might have backfired. It's virtually impossible to please both sides on such a divisive issue that has the country polarized.
Bush's plan is opposed by the usual immigration opponents. Congressman Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., calls it a step backward. Using racially divisive language, one-time presidential candidate Pat Buchanan says Bush is buying Hispanic votes "by selling out the white working class, which, presumably, has nowhere else to go." Then there are staunch conservatives who say it's nothing more than rewarding someone for breaking the law, an amnesty in disguise.
On the other hand, advocates for immigrant rights are pleased that the issue is back on the table, although they are not completely happy with the proposal. The AFL-CIO considers it a "hollow promise" for hardworking undocumented workers. "It creates a permanent underclass of workers who are unable to fully participate in democracy," says AFL-CIO President John Sweeney. Arturo Vargas, who heads the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials, says it doesn't go far enough in offering undocumented immigrants a path to citizenship. Frank Sharry, executive director of the National Immigration Forum, agrees and adds that the proposal lacks family visas and protection for workers.
What Mr. Bush is proposing is not much different from the position he was taking before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks when he told me in an interview at the White House, "We have to have a program that says that there is a willing employer and a willing employee -- let's make it easy for them to get together." Bush went on to say that it's important that we treat people with respect.
Mr. Bush should be applauded for recognizing publicly that a working force of immigrants is needed in this country. Many undocumented workers are relieved at the prospect of having at least temporary legalization. However, I share the concerns of immigration supporters that the proposal does not go far enough in giving workers access to permanent legalization and that it might lead to the separation of families. I wonder what will happen to those guest workers who get married and have children in the country. And where are the visas going to come from for an estimated 8 million undocumented immigrants when there are only 5,000 available for low-skilled workers?
Like many immigration advocates, I hope that in the next weeks and months Mr. Bush will be able to work with both Democrats and Republicans to make sure realistic legislation is pushed through Congress and that his kind and compassionate words don't just end up being political rhetoric to garner some of the coveted Hispanic votes needed for his re-election. Like Mr. Sharry of the National Immigration Forum has said, Bush has an opportunity to write a new chapter in America's rich history as a nation of immigrants. He shouldn't let it go down the drain. |
