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Commentary ° Immigration ° Amnesty

Perceptions
"…we're going to create a temporary worker program that will take pressure off the border, bring workers from out of the shadows, and reject amnesty."

"The program that I proposed would not create an automatic path to citizenship, it wouldn't provide for amnesty -- I oppose amnesty. Rewarding those who have broken the law would encourage others to break the law and keep pressure on our border."

"A temporary worker program, by contrast, would decrease pressure on the border. I support the number of -- increasing the number of annual green cards that can lead to citizenship. But for the sake of justice and for the sake of border security, I'm not going to sign an immigration bill that includes amnesty."
--President George W. Bush
  Tucson, Ariz.
  Davis-Monthan Air Force Base
  November 28, 2005
  http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/interapp/speech/speech_0263.xml

 Commentary Bytes
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IMMIGRATION - AMNESTY

LITIGATION - HOT COFFEE

"Comprehensive immigration reform legislation should ultimately include enhanced border security, more robust interior enforcement, and an effective temporary worker program that does not provide amnesty, but matches willing foreign workers with willing American employers."
--Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff
  Press Release
  May 26, 2006
  http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?content=5661

Giving them an ability to get temporary workers under a system that is not in amnesty, but that is regulated, that has built-in security features is the kind of approach that would answer this economic need and that would also answer the pressure that pushes people to make that trek across the desert. This is kind of basic micro-economics.
--Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff
  Washington, D.C.
  Brookings Institution
  June 1, 2006
  http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?content=5678

There are a number of immigration bills before the 109th Congress, at least ten of which grant amnesty in one form or another. These bills are:

H.R. 251 - Sponsored by Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (TX)

H.R. 884 - Sponsored by Republican Rep. Chris Cannon (Utah) and others

H.R. 1737 - Sponsored by Democratic Rep. Kendrick Meek (FL) and others

H.R. 2092 - Sponsored by Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (TX) and others

H.R. 2330 - Sponsored by Republican Rep. Jim Kolbe (AZ) and others.

H.R. 3364 - Sponsored by Republican Rep. Tom Davis (VA) and others

S. 359 - Sponsored by Republican Sen. Larry Craig (ID) and others

S. 1033 - Sponsored by Republican Sen. John McCain (AZ) and others

S. 1438 - Sponsored by Republican Sen. John Cornyn (TX) and others.

S. 2XXX - Sponsored by Republican Sen. Arlen Specter (PA) and others

For more regarding the text, sponsors and analyses of these bills, please visit: http://www.numbersusa.com/interests/legislation_proposed109.html#amnesties

Facts
"AMNESTY - Indicates a general remission of punishment, penalty, retribution, or disfavor to a whole group or class; it may imply a promise to forget."

"An act of oblivion of past offences, granted by the government to those who have been guilty of any neglect or crime, usually upon condition that they return to their duty within a certain period."

"An amnesty is either express or implied; it is express, when so declared in direct terms; and it is implied, when a treaty of peace is made between contending parties."

"Amnesty … is an act of the sovereign power, the object of which is to efface and to cause to be forgotten, a crime or misdemeanor… Amnesty is the abolition and forgetfulness of the offence."

"An amnesty…has the effect of destroying the criminal act, so that it is as if it had not been committed, as far as the public interests are concerned."

"Amnesty may be granted either before judgment or afterwards, and it is in general given to whole classes of criminals or supposed criminals, for the purpose of restoring tranquility in the state. But sometimes amnesties are limited, and certain classes are excluded from their operation."

The 'Lectric Law Library's Legal Lexicon
http://lectlaw.com//def/a050.htmc

 Commentary
Proponents of these bills cite the presence of steps necessary for illegal immigrants to obtain legal status as the justification for claiming that amnesty is not being offered.

However, the removal of punitive burdens for illegal behavior (illegal entry, presence, document forgery, identity theft, misuse of Social Security, failure to file taxes, etc.) constitutes amnesty. The amnesty is "implied" by the absence of legislative mandated punishment for illegal behavior.

The bills thus present two issues while specifically referencing neither: Amnesty and the unequal treatment of two classes of immigrants.

In lieu of punishment, the bills grant implied Amnesty by offering illegal immigrants abbreviated paths to legal status and citizenship. This constitutes a different and preferential treatment of illegal immigrants over immigrants who pursue legal entry, status and citizenship.

--DL Tolleson

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