Whet
12/18/2010, 07:32 PM
Five Democrats — Max Baucus and Jon Tester of Montana, Kay Hagan of North Carolina, Ben Nelson of Nebraska and Mark Pryor of Arkansas — joined 36 Republicans in blocking the George Soros and La Raza supported Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act (DREAM) Act.
Hispanic activists and immigrant advocates had looked to the bill as a down payment on what they had hoped would be broader action by Obama and the Democratic-controlled Congress to give the nation's 10 million to 12 million illegal immigrants a chance at legal status.
Democrats' determination to vote on the bill before year's end reflected the party's efforts to satisfy Hispanic groups whose backing has been critical in recent elections and will be again in 2012. They said they'll try again in the next Congress, despite the increased GOP presence.
Critics called the bill a backdoor grant of amnesty that would encourage more foreigners to sneak into the United States in hopes of being legalized eventually.
"Treating the symptoms of the problem might make us feel better ... but it can allow the underlying problem to metastasize," said Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz. "Unfortunately, that's what's happening at our border."
Here are the essentials of what the bills would do:
They retroactively repeal the federal ban on in-state tuition for illegal aliens, so individual states would decide whether to grant this subsidy to illegal aliens at the expense of U.S.citizens and legal residents.
They require DHS to award amnesty to every illegal alien claiming to meet minimal criteria: 1) present in the U.S. for the last five years; 2) a U.S. high school diploma or GED, or admitted to a U.S. institution of higher learning; and 3) of “good moral character” with no more than 2 misdemeanor convictions.
The Senate version also requires that amnesty applicants be under 35 years of age and not be subject to a final order of removal or exclusion. Neither version requires specific documentation or other proof that amnesty applicants actually meet these minimal criteria.
Once an alien files an amnesty application, he or she cannot be removed from the United States for any reason until the application is fully processed and a final decision to grant or deny amnesty has been made.
All amnesty applications go to the front of the line for processing, thus bypassing millions of people around the world who have applied to come to the United States the right way.
In order to deny any amnesty application, the federal government has the burden of proving illegal aliens ineligibility for amnesty. There are no numerical limits to the amnesty and there’s no end date for the application process.
Amnestied aliens are required to complete two years of college or military service during their first six years of legal residence, but DHS can waive the requirement or grant additional time to comply for those who do not.
At the end of the six years, amnestied aliens can apply for citizenship and petition to bring their extended relatives—including the parents who brought them here illegally—to the United States. Amnesty beneficiaries are eligible for certain federal student loans and work-study programs.
Hispanic activists and immigrant advocates had looked to the bill as a down payment on what they had hoped would be broader action by Obama and the Democratic-controlled Congress to give the nation's 10 million to 12 million illegal immigrants a chance at legal status.
Democrats' determination to vote on the bill before year's end reflected the party's efforts to satisfy Hispanic groups whose backing has been critical in recent elections and will be again in 2012. They said they'll try again in the next Congress, despite the increased GOP presence.
Critics called the bill a backdoor grant of amnesty that would encourage more foreigners to sneak into the United States in hopes of being legalized eventually.
"Treating the symptoms of the problem might make us feel better ... but it can allow the underlying problem to metastasize," said Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz. "Unfortunately, that's what's happening at our border."
Here are the essentials of what the bills would do:
They retroactively repeal the federal ban on in-state tuition for illegal aliens, so individual states would decide whether to grant this subsidy to illegal aliens at the expense of U.S.citizens and legal residents.
They require DHS to award amnesty to every illegal alien claiming to meet minimal criteria: 1) present in the U.S. for the last five years; 2) a U.S. high school diploma or GED, or admitted to a U.S. institution of higher learning; and 3) of “good moral character” with no more than 2 misdemeanor convictions.
The Senate version also requires that amnesty applicants be under 35 years of age and not be subject to a final order of removal or exclusion. Neither version requires specific documentation or other proof that amnesty applicants actually meet these minimal criteria.
Once an alien files an amnesty application, he or she cannot be removed from the United States for any reason until the application is fully processed and a final decision to grant or deny amnesty has been made.
All amnesty applications go to the front of the line for processing, thus bypassing millions of people around the world who have applied to come to the United States the right way.
In order to deny any amnesty application, the federal government has the burden of proving illegal aliens ineligibility for amnesty. There are no numerical limits to the amnesty and there’s no end date for the application process.
Amnestied aliens are required to complete two years of college or military service during their first six years of legal residence, but DHS can waive the requirement or grant additional time to comply for those who do not.
At the end of the six years, amnestied aliens can apply for citizenship and petition to bring their extended relatives—including the parents who brought them here illegally—to the United States. Amnesty beneficiaries are eligible for certain federal student loans and work-study programs.