President Obama said on Thursday that he was committed to passing a comprehensive immigration plan, but Republicans attending a bipartisan meeting at the White House expressed skepticism a deal could be reached unless Mr. Obama endorsed a guest worker program that Democratic-leaning labor unions oppose.
“What I’m encouraged by is that after all the overheated rhetoric and the occasional demagoguery on all sides around this issue,” Mr. Obama said, “we’ve got a responsible set of leaders sitting around the table who want to actively get something done and not put it off until a year, two years, three years, five years from now.”
In the State Dining Room, Mr. Obama met with nearly three dozen Democratic and Republican lawmakers for the first substantive discussion on immigration since he took office five months ago. Mr. Obama named a working group to be led by Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano.
Mr. Obama singled out his former Republican rival, Senator John McCain of Arizona, for his commitment to changing the nation’s immigration system.
“I want to specially commend John McCain who is with me here today,” Mr. Obama said at the end of the closed-door meeting when reporters were briefly allowed inside. “He has already paid a significant political cost for doing the right thing. I stand with him.”
Mr. McCain, speaking to reporters outside the White House, said comprehensive immigration reform has a fresh urgency because of the surge in violence along the border with Mexico. But he suggested a bigger sticking point could be the guest worker program, which he said must be part of any immigration bill.
“I can’t support any proposal that doesn’t have a legal temporary worker program and I would expect the president of the United States to put his influence on the unions in order to change their position,” Mr. McCain said. “Without a commitment to a legal temporary worker program for our high-tech community and agriculture sector, there is no such thing as comprehensive immigration reform.”
As he walked to a waiting car, Mr. McCain said the president needed to stand up to labor unions and show leadership, saying: “That’s why he was elected president.”
With unemployment rising, several labor unions have opposed a temporary guest worker program. The president made no commitments, according to several participants in the room, but has signaled that he is open to discussing such a program. Several Republicans told Mr. Obama that they had taken political heat in their own parties and it was time for him to do the same.
“We’ve got one more chance to do this,” said Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina. “If we fail this time around, no politician will take this up for a generation.”
Democrats have dreamed of creating a comprehensive national health insurance program for more than 75 years. Yet in their best chance in a generation to pass health care legislation, the difficulties of reconciling broad goals and fiscal realities have become increasingly more apparent.
17 Comments
We need to move beyond the divisive and emotionally charged issue of amnesty for illegal immigrants, which is the core of immigration reform. And, far more important than guest worker programs is the overall impact of legal and illegal immigration on the population of our already crowded country.
Last year the Pew Research Center forecast that our population, which was 296 million in 2005 will increase to 438 million in 2050 (the Census Bureau forecasts 439 million). Of that 48% increase, 82% will be from immigrants who arrive during the 2005 to 2050 period and the descendants of those immigrants.
Comprehensive immigration reform needs to do more than tinker with the hot button issues. We are already the third most populous nation on earth and we need to consider population stabilization.
— TomObama really needs to make sure we legalize all 12 million that did not respect America’s laws. That is his voter block, think of all the great teleprompter speeches Obama can read and how easily he will get re-elected by doing this. Who cares what the right thing to do is or follow the law or even take time to figure out the best way to move forward? It is about Obama and how he can feel good about himself.
— Jane SmithWhat I still do not understand is how the government can spend 2 trillion dollars and still be talking about immigration reform. Congress passed bills to correct the boarder problem under Ronald Reagan. Nothing happened then, I have no confidence that anything will happen now, even if some bill is passed. There is no will in congress to stop immigration.
— pippoproductsThis country was made for IMMIGRANTS coming from many places around the world. And them and their generations are living and working in this soil for many years.
We have almost 12 MILLIONS people already living here, working here and sharing the american culture, people who are singles, married, with families, with 1, 2, 3 or more children….
All them probably 1 or 2 generations are here.
They are part of UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, they choose to came here and live here and follow rules and laws inside U.S.
So Who are we to tell them that canot stay here. if All this nation was made with foreing people.
Probably they not caming full status or overstay from their visa, probably they were walking in the dessert from Mexico or swiming from Caribean to reach american land……BUT they are here and working, holding our FREE MARKET model of economy……
So FIX the immigration law, put in order our border entrance, and help all these HUMAN BEING to raise as americans. so United States of America can be more strong protecting its people.
— Hector D.Another sore point for the GOP, immigration law reform. They have to resist mightily the urge to demand immediate deportation of tens of millions of illegals while trying to make sure that there are still enough to exploit in their factories. The GOP has the anti-Midas touch these days, everything they touch turns into something that’s not gold.
— Jack CohenTo Jack Cohen #5:
My day-to-day experience is to the contrary. Most of the GOP leaning business people I deal with favor a guest worker program, and many favor outright legal status for all undocumented immigrants. On the other hand, the union members and leaders I know, virtually all of whom supported Pres. Obama in 2008, oppose both, and many favor deportation.
— ny independentny independent - Concur. Though many non-union blue collar workers are also concerned about competition from immigrant labor. Whatever strengthens business works for me.
— NCAmnesty will cost 999 billion. Enforce our present immigration laws,attrition by enforcement 14 billion.Promises of enforcement will not do.If Obama is serious about it why has he delayed e-verify 3 or 4 times.The amnesty crowd don’t like it because it works.We were lied to in 1986 and won’t be fooled again.Quit talking about enforcement and do it.Immigration is not broken,our Government is by their refusal to enforse Fedral law and secure our borders.
— Indiana IndependentAmnesty will cost 999 billion. Enforce our present immigration laws,attrition by enforcement 14 billion.Promises of enforcement will not do.If Obama is serious about it why has he delayed e-verify 3 or 4 times.The amnesty crowd don’t like it because it works.We were lied to in 1986 and won’t be fooled again.Quit talking about enforcement and do it.Immigration is not broken,our Government is by their refusal to enforce Fedral law and secure our borders.
— Indiana Independentif obama and mccain want to legalize all illegal aliens that broke the law, violated our borders, then the two should release all federal prisoners excepting for those imprisoned for violent crimes. all federal prisoners should be given amnesty too since they broke federal laws in their criminality. if obama, mccain can forgive illegal aliens then they should forgive all federal prisoners of non-violent crimes. obama and mccain, two peas in a pod when it comes to forgiving illegal aliens, not protecting our nation’s borders, not upholding the nation’s laws. if only we could have the election over again, if only the gop had fielded some other candidates besides palin and mccain. we are all hosed.
— LawrenceOnce again the Republicans have proved their political smarts. Their base (read the comments above) will never let them vote for this bill, but they won’t have to. By demanding a guest worker provision, they’ve turned it into an Obama versus the unions issue. Brilliant! They well learned the lessons of Master Karl. No immigration reform, no health care reform, no Wall Street reform and no trials for terrorist suspects, what a sad commentary.
— daldocI write as an “illegal immigrant” ,basically out of status having overstayed my visa,originally from sub-saharan africa.It’s suddening to read and listen to rhetoric over immigration reforms over the past 4-5 years i have been around.Probably ,whats missing in this conversation are the reasons why people decide to stick around:most importantly like jews after the genocide or the irish after the great depression ,is the human element that makes us withstand extinction when survival is under threat.I come from a country where on average people live on a dollar per day accompanied by family obligations.Therefore,my intention is stick around and take of my family in absentia ,so long my activities are within the American law at the same being hopeful that law makers will one day wake up and rightly think of the plight of us living in the shadow.Our determination can never be under-estimated,its written in the bible that jews survived 40 years of oppression in desert ,yes ! we also can.
We are not terrorists as portrayed by right wing radio talk hosts but those with equal vested interests in this country like any American.My hope and prayer is ,immigration reforms serious being taken up and it ceasing being a political football;being illegal is tantamount to being a slave a position i believe the senate just rebuked recently.God bless America .
-Andie
— akmUnited We Stand.
— gonzaloGotta love that John McCain. President Obama is gracious enough to extend a welcoming hand to McCain and invite him to work with him on a big problem. McCain says sure, glad to, if you do it my way. Don’t you just love the bipartisanship of those Republicans?
— sharonPost @6 by ny independent: “Most of the GOP leaning business people I deal with favor a guest worker program, and many favor outright legal status for all undocumented immigrants.”
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This may be so - for now. I wonder, though, how much support these same guys would have for a guest worker program that outlawed the manipulation, discrimination, and slave wages paid to these same people? Sort of reminds me of the health care debate in one sense. When the discriminatory practice used by private health insurers to ban coverage to those with pre-existing conditions is outlawed, the support is particularly absent. Business practices being what they are, often exploitative……well, you do see the problem, don’t you?
— Peter G.Why do politicians campaign on promises that they will create more jobs so that all the Americans who want one can have one — and then say that this country needs more immigrants because this country has more jobs than workers? If this country really has more jobs than workers, why do voters respond to promises that no one needs?
Or is this issue really about giving employers an entitlement to cheap labor: no medical benefits and low wages? Even as politicians bemoan the increasing disparity in income — is that disparity the government policy that drives our immigration policy and need for a guest worker program?
— Kevin RicaAs a Republican, how a Republican stands on guest worker indentured labor programs has become a litmus test for me. I vote for very few Republicans nowadays as a result.
Pro guest worker Republicans are as phony as a three dollar bill on the immigration issue no matter how tough they talk.
— Richard A.