Tackling Illegal Immigration
TACKLING ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION
The discussion regarding illegal immigration is gaining momentum in Washington and across America. People are waking up to the fact that our immigration policy isn't working.
It's not working because we don't have the resources for enforcement backing the current policies. Many of the reforms before Congress now attempt to tackle too many issues at once. As any Husker football fan will tell you, even the best Blackshirt can't tackle four running backs at the same time. The smarter, more effective, play is to take aim at one problem at a time and we need to start where the problem startsat the border.
Since first addressing the importance of securing our border on two months ago, I've enjoyed the support of my colleagues and the president.
On October 14, 2005, the Washington Times reported that Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said the Senate "will tackle border security and interior immigration enforcement before turning to the broader question of immigration reforms and a guest-worker program." And in a press conference later that week, Frist said, "We need to focus on the border. We need to actually focus on enforcement."
On his two-day tour of the U.S.-Mexico border just last week, President Bush said, "Illegal immigration's a serious challenge and our responsibility is clear. We are going to protect the border."
I am not surprised at the amount of attention America's border security is receiving. I know from visiting with my fellow Nebraskans how important the issue of illegal immigration is to them, and the national attention is proof that we're not alone.
To do my part for our state and nation, I authored the bipartisan Border Security and Interior Enforcement Improvement Act of 2005. This legislation doubles the number of border agents over five years, provides for the construction of a border fence from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico, and coordinates aerial surveillance with the Department of Defense.
Personally, I wish there was no need for a bill boosting border security. I take pride knowing that we are a nation founded by immigrants but I do not forget that we are also a nation bound by laws. And it's our responsibility to simultaneously preserve America's strong heritage of justice and immigration.
America is simply digging a hole for itself with its failed immigration policies. My father always told me that the first thing to do to get out of a hole is to stop digging. My bill stops the digging by securing our borders and stopping the flood of illegal immigration.
http://bennelson.senate.gov/news/details.cfm?id=249538&&