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March 18, 2006
An Immigration Breakthrough
There is an Editorial in the New York Times which illustrates the turning point in the immigration debate.
Published: March 18, 2006;
“The clock was running out on the Senate Judiciary Committee this week, and with it the chances for a meaningful overhaul of the nation's immigration laws. After weeks of work, the committee members faced a rigid deadline to get a bill ready before next week's recess. But about all they had agreed on were various ways to tighten the borders. It was increasingly likely that Congress's message to 12 million illegal immigrants would end up being this: Thanks for the help — now get out.
But in a startling pivot, so sharp you could almost hear it, a bipartisan consensus emerged in the hearing room. Senator Arlen Specter, the committee's chairman, endorsed the principle behind an earlier bill sponsored by Senators John McCain and Edward Kennedy: that illegal immigrants who met strict criteria and paid fines and back taxes should have a path to permanent residency and citizenship”.
For more go to;
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/18/opinion/18sat1.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin
Posted by VisaLawyer at March 18, 2006 08:22 AM