Thursday, May 25, 2006
House Republicans have criticized the Senate bill.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate supporters of landmark immigration legislation looked ahead Wednesday to passage of a measure along lines set by President Bush, but they also signaled a willingness to seek common ground with conservatives whose House version would be far tougher on millions of men and women in the country illegally.
With Senate approval assured today, Arlen Specter, R-Pa., the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, said, "Does anybody have a better approach? Not yet. But we're still open for business."
"If there are some unneeded and unwanted complexities in this legislation, they could probably be smoothed out," said Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. He said it was good news that new suggestions were coming from the House.
The Senate bill's passage, long assumed, was assured with a decision to limit debate. That 73-25 vote set the stage for final approval today in what will be a bipartisan ratification of legislation that calls for increased border security, a new guest worker program and a shot at citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants.
By contrast, legislation passed last year by the Republican-controlled House is generally limited to border security. It would expose all of the estimated 11 million to 12 million illegal immigrants in the country to felony charges, and it contains no guest worker program.
Compromise
Contentious compromise talks seemed sure as supporters of the Senate bill beat back the last in a long series of potentially lethal challenges to their handiwork.
An attempt by Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., to scuttle the bill on grounds it violated spending limits was turned aside. The vote was 67-31.
For a second consecutive week, the White House dispatched top presidential aide Karl Rove to meet with rank-and-file House Republicans. Officials said his mission was to reassure critics by emphasizing Bush's commitment to stanching the flow of illegal immigrants across the Mexican border. Asked as he departed the Capitol whether he had made progress, he replied, "Could be."
Whatever impact Rove had, supporters of the Senate bill said at a news conference they did not underestimate the difficulties ahead as they seek an election-year compromise.
On the border
Elsewhere, the first wave of about 800 National Guard soldiers will head to the U.S-Mexico border as early as next week, including planners and leadership personnel who will stay longer than the planned 21-day missions, the National Guard chief told lawmakers Wednesday.
Lt. Gen. Steven Blum said 200 soldiers are preparing to go to each of the four border states -- California, Texas, Arizona and New Mexico -- around June 1. He said the initial troops will be part of a longer-term force of project managers who will stay on the job over time to provide continuity in the new border program.
The troops represent the launch of President Bush's plan to dispatch up to 6,000 National Guard members to states bordering Mexico to support the Border Patrol and help stem the flow of illegal immigrants across the border.
It was not clear whether the initial influx of Guard members would come from the four border states or from other units across the country.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.