Bush, Senate Press Forward on Immigration

WASHINGTON (CNN) May 19, 2006 — There was a flurry of activity Thursday in the Senate and by President Bush over proposals on immigration reform and the president's plan to send thousands of National Guard troops to the Mexican border to help stop the flow of illegal immigrants into the United States.

The Bush administration sent Congress a request for $1.9 billion to cover the costs of steps he announced Monday night, including the deployment of up to 6,000 troops to states along the Mexican border -- California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.

"They will assist the Border Patrol by operating surveillance systems, building infrastructure, analyzing intelligence, and providing training until new Border Patrol officers and technologies come online," Bush wrote in a letter to House Speaker Dennis Hastert that accompanied the funding request.

Bush toured the busiest stretch of the border Thursday, with stops in the Arizona cities of San Luis and Yuma, where he touted his plan to curb illegal immigration as a "comprehensive strategy to get the job done."

Last year, Border Patrol agents in the Yuma sector apprehended 70,000 illegal entrants, a 14 percent increase from the previous year, Bush said. He pushed for "full control of the border."

Bush made no mention during his trip of two competing proposals in Congress -- one approved by the House that would build 700 miles of fencing along the roughly 2,000-mile border and one in the Senate that would build half that.

Opponents contend the barriers would shift illegal immigrant and smuggling traffic to areas of the border without fencing.

Mexican President Vicente Fox repeated his opposition to barriers Thursday.

"The Mexican government has talked on multiple occasions about your construction of walls -- of barriers -- on the border. They do not offer an effective answer for a relationship of friends and partners," he said.

Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Ernesto Derbez said he sent a diplomatic note to the United States outlining his government's worries.

Bush generally favors the outlines of the Senate bill, which calls for a new guest worker program and an eventual opportunity for citizenship for some of the estimated 12 million immigrants in the United States illegally.

Senate defeats 'poison pill' amendment

On Thursday, the Senate passed an amendment to its immigration reform bill that would make it easier for guest workers to apply for permanent residency. It would allow immigrants who have worked in the country for four years to petition for permanent residency and acquire a green card.

The amendment would apply to illegal immigrants who entered the country before April 2001. They could move toward eventual citizenship by paying $2,000 in fines and any back taxes they owe, undergoing a background check, working for at least six more years and learning English. They would also have to wait in line behind people who applied to legally emigrate.

The House bill does not provide any possibility for citizenship.

The Senate reversed a previous stance that would have required an illegal immigrant's employer to apply for a worker's residency.

Late Thursday, the Senate defeated a proposed amendment that would have blocked low-skilled guest workers from getting on a path to citizenship. The proposal was described as a "poison pill" amendment by backers of the bill currently under debate.

The Senate also voted Thursday to amend the bill to make English the "national" language of the United States. Moments later, senators called English a "common and unifying language."

Bush urged the Senate to pass an immigration bill by the end of the month, so it and the House can begin reconciling their versions in a conference committee.