Keep Immigration Issue Alive

KEEP IMMIGRATION ISSUE ALIVE -- (House of Representatives - June 28, 2006)

(Mr. COSTA asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. COSTA. Mr. Speaker, I rise to urge my colleagues to keep the immigration issue alive today. In spite of extraordinary efforts by our President and the Senate, the House majority is stalling any real negotiations by insisting on time-consuming hearings aimed at taking the temperature of the American public.

We know a clear majority of Americans want action and reform. Should we attempt border security first, which I believe we should, we still need to face the fact that comprehensive reform is necessary. This must include a guest worker program and dealing with the 11 million people who are here today that are contributing to our economy.

Need I remind my colleagues of the difficulty we had in just moving a few hundred thousand people from the gulf coast during the Katrina hurricane? Let us convene now the conference committee on immigration and deal with the issue and develop a bipartisan solution.

Delaying the conference committee with this proposed dog and pony show does the Nation no good. Further discussions need to begin. Delaying the difficult decisions will not make it go away. The American public wants and deserves action, not the politics of division.

http://thomas.loc.gov/