[N8 v2.0]

Illegal immigrants could stay, work for at least three years under Bush plan
miami.com ^ | 01/07/2004 | JENNIFER LOVEN

WASHINGTON - Millions of illegal migrant farmers, hotel maids and others working in the shadows of American society would be freed from the threat of deportation for at least three years and could get a chance - although probably remote for most - at permanent legal U.S. status under an election-year proposal President Bush is asking Congress to approve.

The new "temporary worker program," which also would include people still in their native countries who have a job lined up in the United States, would not, like the temporary visa programs already in existence that involve mostly technical experts, apply only to a certain sector of the economy or industry.

If permanent residency were not granted before the worker's term was up - a likely outcome given the long backlog of applicants and the relatively small percentage of applicants who receive green cards each year - the person would have to return to his or her home country to apply from there.
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N8Note: So does this in effect deny the dem's one of their voting blocks by remove the hispanic vote from the democrats rank & file and put them in the Republican's column? Or is it a failed gamble that will only further anger the right???

 

[ohio]

Originally posted by N8

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N8Note: So does this in effect deny the dem's one of their voting blocks by remove the hispanic vote from the democrats rank & file and put them in the Republican's column? Or is it a failed gamble that will only further anger the right???

I think both. Honestly, at this point Bush isn't going after the right. He doesn't need to... who else are they going to vote for? He's doing his best to clinch the middle, and doing a pretty nice job of it.

I'm looking for the conservative catch to this legislation and I don't see it yet, so I really don't care about the games behind it. I think it's a good step to encouraging alien registration, improving the immigration process, and cutting into Walmart-esque sub-minimum wages. 3 years isn't a ton of time, but it's better than running from the INS and making 3.50 an hour.

 

[N8 v2.0]

I don't see any signs of a conservitive spin on it either.

I think it is interesting that Pres GW Bush is fulfilling many of the agenda items that the democrats have been promising for decades and not delivering on... prescription drugs, immigration reform, increased educations spending etc... If sucessful, he could possibly nearly eliminate the democratic party entirely.