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Bush Immigration Plan Draws Criticism
By CHRIS ROBERTS, AP
EL PASO, Texas (Jan. 8) - President Bush's immigration proposal got a mostly cool response from those who grapple with the issue, with conservatives saying it goes too far, immigrant rights groups saying it doesn't go far enough and some Hispanic groups calling it a hollow electioneering ploy.
Reuters
Bush says his proposal won't provide amnesty for foreigners who are in the U.S. illegally.
Many Republicans balked at the bureaucratic headaches ahead, and at the idea of rewarding illegal immigrants, while many of the very people Bush intends to help said the plan doesn't give them what they want: citizenship.
The president's temporary worker program unveiled Wednesday would offer undocumented workers who can show they have a job - or a job offer for those still in their home countries - an initial three-year work permit that would be renewable for an unspecified period.
Some immigrants were encouraged by the possibility of having some 8 million illegal foreign workers estimated to be in this country granted legal status and the protection of U.S. laws.
''From nothing to this, well, at least that's a good start,'' said Florencio Guzman Silva, a 60-year-old bricklayer from Mexico, who waited with 100 other people at a day labor center in Phoenix, Ariz.
But Lucas Benitez, one of the founders of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, which represents thousands of immigrants who work mostly in agriculture and in service sectors in Florida, questioned Bush's motives.
''It's a political ploy to get Hispanic votes, like in the 2000 presidential election,'' Benitez said. ''The proposal only benefits the industries. It exploits the work force that has always been unprotected and it lowers the workers' salaries even more.''
On the other end of the spectrum, David Ray, spokesman for the Washington-based Federation For American Immigration Reform, which advocates limits on immigration, argued that Bush's policies undermine American workers' wages and encourage illegal immigration.
''It's mind-boggling that in the midst of economic recovery with 9 million people jobless, President Bush would propose this,'' Ray said. ''It's going to have a dire effect on wages for American families. It will cause huge displacement of American workers. We will witness how American jobs are given away right before our eyes.''
The Bush administration - sensitive to conservatives who oppose any reward for those who broke the law when they entered the United States - said it is not proposing blanket amnesty for illegals and the program is not linked to the green card process, which grants citizenship.
Some immigrant rights groups expressed disappointment at that omission, saying permanent citizenship should be extended to millions of hardworking, taxpaying immigrants and their family members.
''What we need is comprehensive reform that includes a generous legalization component, labor rights protections and guarantees of family unification,'' the New Mexico-based group Somos Un Pueblo Unido said in a statement Wednesday.
Other observers focused on the implications for American businesses
By CHRIS ROBERTS, AP
EL PASO, Texas (Jan. 8) - President Bush's immigration proposal got a mostly cool response from those who grapple with the issue, with conservatives saying it goes too far, immigrant rights groups saying it doesn't go far enough and some Hispanic groups calling it a hollow electioneering ploy.
Reuters
Bush says his proposal won't provide amnesty for foreigners who are in the U.S. illegally.
Many Republicans balked at the bureaucratic headaches ahead, and at the idea of rewarding illegal immigrants, while many of the very people Bush intends to help said the plan doesn't give them what they want: citizenship.
The president's temporary worker program unveiled Wednesday would offer undocumented workers who can show they have a job - or a job offer for those still in their home countries - an initial three-year work permit that would be renewable for an unspecified period.
Some immigrants were encouraged by the possibility of having some 8 million illegal foreign workers estimated to be in this country granted legal status and the protection of U.S. laws.
''From nothing to this, well, at least that's a good start,'' said Florencio Guzman Silva, a 60-year-old bricklayer from Mexico, who waited with 100 other people at a day labor center in Phoenix, Ariz.
But Lucas Benitez, one of the founders of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, which represents thousands of immigrants who work mostly in agriculture and in service sectors in Florida, questioned Bush's motives.
''It's a political ploy to get Hispanic votes, like in the 2000 presidential election,'' Benitez said. ''The proposal only benefits the industries. It exploits the work force that has always been unprotected and it lowers the workers' salaries even more.''
On the other end of the spectrum, David Ray, spokesman for the Washington-based Federation For American Immigration Reform, which advocates limits on immigration, argued that Bush's policies undermine American workers' wages and encourage illegal immigration.
''It's mind-boggling that in the midst of economic recovery with 9 million people jobless, President Bush would propose this,'' Ray said. ''It's going to have a dire effect on wages for American families. It will cause huge displacement of American workers. We will witness how American jobs are given away right before our eyes.''
The Bush administration - sensitive to conservatives who oppose any reward for those who broke the law when they entered the United States - said it is not proposing blanket amnesty for illegals and the program is not linked to the green card process, which grants citizenship.
Some immigrant rights groups expressed disappointment at that omission, saying permanent citizenship should be extended to millions of hardworking, taxpaying immigrants and their family members.
''What we need is comprehensive reform that includes a generous legalization component, labor rights protections and guarantees of family unification,'' the New Mexico-based group Somos Un Pueblo Unido said in a statement Wednesday.
Other observers focused on the implications for American businesses