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Saxby Chambliss
WASHINGTON — Hoping to frame public debate over immigration in an election year, several Republican senators, including Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn.; Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga.; and Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., on Wednesday introduced 15 bills related to the issue.
The legislation aimed at securing the U.S.-Mexico border and cracking down on illegal immigration ranges from requiring English as the national language to denying driver licenses to illegal immigrants and providing more funding for border control agents.
“We said last year that we are going to keep pounding this issue and that is what we are doing today in unveiling these proposals,” Sen. Chambliss said.
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has favored a less aggressive approach and eagerly is courting Hispanic voters.
Sen. McCain came under conservative fire in 2007 for his support of a White House-backed comprehensive immigration reform package that would have granted citizenship to millions of illegal immigrants already here, a move dubbed “amnesty” by many Republicans.
Sens. Chambliss and Isakson had been among the bipartisan group drafting the package before pulling their support over the amnesty provisions.
Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., who helped defeat the legislation last year and is leading the Republican push on immigration this session, brushed off concerns that his approach may fracture the party leading up to the presidential election.
“If we do the right thing, the American people will be proud at that and happy at that,” he said.
The bills likely will face significant Democratic opposition, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has indicated he will oppose the legislation.
Sen. Alexander, who holds the Republican caucus’ No. 3 leadership position, noted the bill he introduced, which would add 8,000 border patrol agents over five years and improve the electronic verification system for employers to check a job applicant’s legal status, is co-sponsored by Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark.
An identical House version of the bill also has the support of many moderate Democrats, including Rep. Lincoln Davis, D-Tenn.
Reps. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn.; Nathan Deal, R-Ga.; and John Duncan, R-Tenn., have signed on as co-sponsors.
“Other than the war on terror, there is nothing more important than fixing our broken immigration system,” Sen. Alexander said. “We need to regain the public’s confidence, and to do that we must first secure our borders.”
House Republicans are considering a procedural move that would force a vote on the bill, but Rep. Davis said he hopes Republicans do not make the push for purely political purposes.
“I support legislation that would enforce our immigration laws,” he said. “I hope we are able to do that through the normal legislative process. That’s how we did it when Republicans had control.”
Sens. Chambliss and Isakson also Wednesday announced the formation of the Border Security and Enforcement First Caucus.
The legislation they proposed Wednesday would give local law enforcement the authority to enforce federal immigration laws and compensate their jurisdictions for any expenses related to immigration enforcement.
“This bill is essential to giving state and local law enforcement the common-sense means to be successful partners with federal immigration officials,” Sen. Isakson said.
