Senate Panel Adds Immigration Measure to Iraq Supplemental
The Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday added to an Iraq spending bill a controversial provision to help pave the way for undocumented agriculture workers to win legal status, a move that may reopen the divisive immigration debate on the Senate floor.
The so-called Ag-Jobs amendment, sponsored by Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Larry Craig (R-Idaho), would create a process that allows undocumented workers to continue to work on farms. Without the amendment, Feinstein warned that the U.S. would lose $5-9 billion to foreign competition, tens of thousands of farms would shut down and 80,000 workers would be transferred to Mexico. The bill would sunset in five years.
“Agriculture needs a consistent workforce,” Feinstein said. “Without it, they can’t plant, they can’t prune, they can’t pick and they can’t pack.
“This is an emergency situation,” she added.
The amendment was approved by a 17-12 vote with defections from both parties. Critics say the amendment amounts to amnesty for people who entered the country illegally. A broader comprehensive immigration overhaul, with a path for citizenship for the nation’s estimated 12 million illegal immigrants, failed in a divisive Senate vote last year.
“No matter how one characterizes it, this enormous amendment still amounts to amnesty,” said Chairman Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.). “I oppose amnesty. All these immigration issues should be addressed through the regular order.”
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It is unclear whether Democrats have the votes to approve the domestic-spending provision since a number of Republicans want to add their priorities. The measure remains one of the few vehicles likely to get enacted before the election in November. The addition of a slew of amendments could doom its prospects in the Senate.
(Posted on May 16, 2008)
Comments
There is also a stealth amnesty inside the farm bill. Of course, we have to have a “farm bill” to help “farmers,” (read: agribusiness), because food commodity futures are currently at an all-time low, don’t ya know.
Posted by Question Diversity at 6:42 PM on May 16
Well, well, well. The liberal/neocon alliance strikes once again.
And Larry Craig? Does the man have no shame whatsoever? He shouldn’t even be in the Senate, let alone co-sponsoring another poisonous cheap-labor amnesty bill.
Posted by Old Victorian at 8:29 PM on May 16
As is expected, Comrade Senator Feinstein spews forth her wanton and treasonous idiocy, for all to endure. With what I am sure, are the maudlin violins and rapturous applause that only she can “hear” in a fully deafening vortex echoing in her head, she utters this sort of undocumented wisdom:
“Agriculture needs a consistent workforce…Without it, they can’t plant, they can’t prune, they can’t pick and they can’t pack…
This is an emergency situation…”
But how is this proven?
How has it ever been demonstrated, that without illegal aliens in the field of agriculture it would be destroyed?
If this is such an “emergency,” adding competing mouths to feed in this country might be very unwise. This would be particularly true, when so many in the urban wastelands of crime and drugs, or our prison systems, go fully unengaged in the marshalling of human resources to deal with the “emergency.” Moreover, the underutilized on welfare or cheating SSI on “disabilities” could contribute to solving this “emergency” and should be employed, before the extraordinary step of grating an amnesty to 12 to 20 million interloping feeders is taken.
Certainly the Mexican “government” might not care for such solutions; nor, might many global or homegrown “human rights” organizations (such as, the UN or the SPLC) but who cares?
This is an “emergency” and it needs to be overcome, not exacerbated; clearly exacerbation, is all too possibly an outgrowth of the excessive and unnecessary population inflation that an amnesty would harbinger.
As always, God help us all!
Posted by John PM at 8:30 PM on May 16
Please explain this. Why does CITIZENSHIP have to the end result of hiring part time laborers to pick fruit. Why cant they come (without their wives, cousins, 5 kids, grandparents etc) pick the fruit..take their money be driven back to the border AND SENT HOME?
It worked for 20 years 1944-64. The Bracero Program.
Posted by at 1:49 AM on May 17
These elite swine have no problem shipping every last damn manufacturing job out of the U.S. So why are these creeps squawking about the LOSS of farm jobs ? Answer ; because the One World/CFR gang want to submerge white America into the brown bio mass and finish off once and for all. Which way Western man ?
Posted by MacGrath at 1:53 AM on May 17
All they need to do is cut off the welfare checks, and there will be plenty looking for those jobs.
Posted by The Quadfather at 9:01 AM on May 17
Why doesn’t someone take the commonsense step of instituting a “one bill, one policy” policy?* I loathe all of these inane riders that career politicians use to grant themselves and their buddies more perks.
*Rhetorical question
Posted by ODDL at 9:12 AM on May 17
Why is it an “emergency situation” to Sen. Feinstein, to import more Mexicans to earn an unlivable wage, from large Aggi-companies, and over-subsidized farmers, but it is not an emergency that Americans are victimized on daily basis by illegals.
Posted by Kellie at 12:16 PM on May 17
I had an interesting thought, if I had a way to be a legal resident would I keep picking lettuce or would I seek a better job now that I have the papers to work anywhere I want?
I seem to recall that being the case when we had our (hopefully) last amnesty.
Posted by pat at 1:43 PM on May 17
“The Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday added to an Iraq spending bill a controversial provision to help pave the way for undocumented agriculture workers to win legal status,…”
Ah, yes, the people’s Senate, its members enduring long hours to work the people’s will, represent the citizenry, and protect them from all enemies, foreign and domestic - excepting of course, from themselves.
Posted by Gary at 1:57 PM on May 17
As always, Dianne Feinstein ignores and works against the will of the people! Just my luck… She happens to be one of my Senators. I’m constantly giving this “rep” a piece of my mind through NumbersUSA… Everyone should join this site/cause!
Also, check out Michelle Malkin… Her lead story today gives access to “The National Republican Congressional Committee” Blog… Their top story on a “Positive Plan for Republicans” has received close to 2,000 scathing posts! I read quite a few of these posts and could not find one single post in favor of Juan McCain!
Posted by Jackers at 10:24 AM on May 18
Time to have a stealth impeachment bill!
Posted by at 10:48 AM on May 18
This is really an in your face act by Feinstein and Craig. What makes it even more hideous is the fact that this provision was inserted into an Iraq War funding bill. It is “in your face” because the American people spoke out loud and clear about any kind of amnesty during the McCain-Kennedy debacle. Saying that this bill would sunset in five years is a complete insult to the intelligence of the American people. Our elected “representatives” are completely out of control. They do things like this all the time and they use the taxpayers money like their own piggy bank with the $billions in ear marks. This outrageous attitude prevails in both houses. The House members voted to allow every member the right to lease an automobile complete with gas credit cards. Some of the cars selected cost the taxpayer a thousand dollars a month. It is no wonder that our country is in dire financial straits due to “representatives” who always seem to put their own personal interests ahead of the country’s interests.
Posted by John at 8:20 PM on May 18
I hope these farms do close. Since agribusinesses are profiting from the deliberate destruction of the US, they deserve to go bankrupt.
Posted by Michael C. Scott at 9:47 PM on May 18
What this is really all about is simply the continued efforts of our corporate elites (a state in which the major corporations direct policy through their “democratic” representatives is more akin to Mussolini’s Italy than to the American Republic) to maximize their profits by transforming this country into a third world slum. As these elites are international in character, their goal is the elimination of the US as a soverign nation which is to be swept up in a world government—-just look at NAFTA, GAT, WTO, the international court in the Hague. There is more at stake here than merely stopping the insourcing of low cost foreign workers into the US.
Posted by at 7:54 AM on May 19
The good news here is that this bill won’t make it past the House. Our representatives have a clearer idea of whom they work for, and have repeatedly voted down amnesty bills.
Posted by Michael C. Scott at 1:31 PM on May 19
What they never tell us is why we require an unending stream of workers from Mexico? Are these farms bottomless pits of acres as far as the eye can see that swallow up farmworkers? No! These workers last a season or two and then graduate into other jobs that “Americans won’t do.”
My wife and I just finished planting a garden that measures 100’X50’ - which is huge. We have for example 70 tomato plants of varying types, four different types of corn, and much, much more. We plan to can, freeze, dry in order to fight ridiculous prices at the supermarket, eat more healthy, and give a big middle finger to agri-business and these politicians. We will sell our surplus at local farmers markets and small grocery stores. I know we are not alone - good!
We just finished working for several weeks planting, on our knees, stooped over, behind a big tiller, etc. The whole time I felt great while doing it - and I feel even better now. This is the best thing white separatists could be doing right now; learning to become independent. I am proud to be working like my great grandfather did! A sense of value that cannot be gained by railing everyday online awaits those posters who are wanting to go something. Time again for the Victory Garden!
Part of what is wrong is a sickness in America, with lifestyles have long been unsustainable. Kids have little to do but create drama for themselves and flirt with drug use and plain bad thinking habits. It is a laziness that requires a shakeup to bring us back to lifestyles that create values and community. I think it is possible to reform ourselves without a revival of Cromwell’s Puritan fanaticism. Well, at least I am trying to do something now.
Posted by Whiteplight at 2:50 PM on May 19