Illegal Immigration: Daschle urges amnesty for all illegal workers Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Published: 7/17/01 Author: SHARIF DURHAMS
Daschle urges amnesty for all illegal workers -- He says Bush proposal shouldn't be limited to Mexican immigrants
By SHARIF DURHAMS of the Journal Sentinel staff
Last Updated: July 17, 2001
Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle on Monday raised the ante on a proposal President Bush's aides are weighing that would grant amnesty to illegal Mexican workers, saying members of other nationalities should be included in any grant of U.S. citizenship.
"Congress needs to pass, and the president needs to sign, a broad legalization program for undocumented, long-term workers," Daschle said Monday at the National Council of La Raza's annual convention in Milwaukee.
Daschle's statement comes in the wake of a draft proposal by Bush's top immigration officials suggesting that as many as 3 million Mexican immigrants living illegally in the country be given a chance to earn permanent legal residency.
White House spokesman Ari Fleischer acknowledged reports of the amnesty proposal Monday, saying that Bush wants to send "a welcoming signal, that people from Mexico, other nations, should feel welcome in the United States."
Daschle (D-S.D.) made broad criticisms of current immigration policies, saying the government needs to help Latino families by raising the minimum wage and allowing illegal immigrants and permanent residents to draw from Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program.
He also said federal officials should reinstitute policies allowing immediate family members of U.S. citizens - a Mexican immigrant who marries an American, for example - to apply for visas without having to leave the country while their paperwork is being processed.
"President Bush says he shares our concerns about the immigration system, and that's very encouraging," Daschle said.
La Raza leaders see the interest in the Bush administration's proposal as an opportunity to tie some of their civil rights concerns to border and immigration policy.
While supportive of Bush's proposal, Raul Yzaguirre, president and CEO of La Raza, said it should come with certain conditions. Workers who cross the border should be able to form labor unions, Yzaguirre said. When working on farms, he said, they should be protected by the same health and safety regulations that protect workers in other fields from pesticide exposure and similar dangers. They should not have to be beholden to a particular employer or have to work in a particular industry as a condition of their legal residency.
And, echoing Daschle, Yzaguirre said the Bush proposal should not be limited to Mexicans. People of all nationalities should be able to participate.