Senate Immigration Bill Delivers Amnesty and Cheap Labor, but Not Immigration Reform

WASHINGTON, April 16, 2013  — As expected, the Gang of Eight’s long-anticipated immigration plan offers sweeping amnesty for illegal aliens, even greater access to low-wage labor for business interests, and more worthless promises of border security and workplace enforcement, charged the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR).

Senate leadership is now poised to rush this voluminous piece of legislation to the floor with minimal hearings and little opportunity for members to offer amendments. “Having spent months working on this bill in secret, there is now a clear effort afoot to make sure that the American people do not find out what is in it until after it becomes law,” said Dan Stein, president of FAIR.

What is in the bill:

• Amnesty for virtually all illegal aliens within six months of enactment.
• A directive to the Obama administration to create a five-year plan to secure the border—a core function of the executive branch that Congress should not have to dictate.
• Empty promises of border security based on measures already required by law.
• Hundreds of thousands of new skilled and low-skilled workers each year, despite historically high levels of unemployment and the lowest labor force participation rate in more than three decades.

“Simply put, Congress has no business even introducing amnesty legislation until the Obama administration secures the border, sets forth clear and transparent metrics to measure its success, and demonstrates to the American people it is serious about enforcing our immigration laws across the country. Border security and the rule of law should not be held hostage to amnesty for illegal aliens. The fact that Congress has to legislatively order the Obama administration to develop a plan to secure the border should be an embarrassment for this president, not something to be welcomed with pride,” Stein stated.

“Nevertheless, the Senate Gang of Eight has finally announced a bill, one that will rob American workers and taxpayers—all to please special interests. This legislation is all about satisfying the demands of illegal aliens and their advocates for amnesty and providing business interests access to low-wage foreign labor.

“Through this bill, the Senate Gang of Eight is offering the American people nothing except recycled promises of better enforcement far in the future. And from the details available, we can be certain that these promises will not be kept either. The programs that grant amnesty to illegal aliens and a steady supply of low-wage labor will be implemented, regardless of whether the border is secure,” continued Stein.

“The Washington and Wall Street elite have the bill they want. Now it is time for the American people to have their say,” Stein noted. “Over the coming weeks, FAIR and other groups dedicated to immigration reform that protects the interests of Americans will be mounting a full-scale effort to educate the public about this bill’s blatant attempt to favor special interests at their expense and to mobilize opposition.

“At a time when the American people are deeply concerned about their jobs, the state of our economy, and dangerous government deficits, we are likely to see the public respond negatively to this expensive and unnecessary legislation. Over the coming weeks and months, every member of Congress will have to explain to angry constituents why the interests of illegal aliens and cheap labor employers are being given precedence over the most essential interests of American workers and taxpayers.

“Congress will have a hard time justifying this special interest sell-out to the American people,” Stein predicted.