Washington – Sen. Ken Salazar said Monday’s nationwide immigration boycotts and protests haven’t had much effect on the congressional immigration debate and predicts there’s about a 50-50 chance of passing an immigration bill this year.
“I don’t know whether we will succeed in passing a law,” Salazar, D-Colo., told reporters Wednesday. “The president’s leadership is very much needed on this issue.”
Immigration legislation has bogged down in the Senate, though senators appear to be leaning toward a guest-worker plan and a path to citizenship for many illegal immigrants.
The House has backed a harder line supported by Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., opposing citizenship for illegal workers and focusing on border control.
That puts the two houses of Congress at loggerheads. Senators like Salazar want President Bush – who supports a guest- worker plan – to pressure House leaders to relent.
“I don’t think those demonstrations by themselves will change what will happen on the bill,” Salazar said. “We have known for 20 years that we have broken borders, and the demonstrations are a continuation of a drumbeat that has been beating over time.”
Salazar said he has proposed requiring illegal immigrants to perform community service before getting legal status, in addition to a long waiting period and other requirements.
Salazar, a member of the “Gang of 14” senators who agreed last year to avoid filibusters on Bush’s nominees for judicial vacancies except in “extraordinary circumstances,” also weighed in on one of Bush’s latest court selections. Salazar said Terrence Boyle, nominated for the 4th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, is “not qualified to be a judge” and is “out of the mainstream.”
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said this week he was considering a filibuster of Boyle’s nomination.
Staff writer Mike Soraghan can be reached at 202-662-8730 or msoraghan@denverpost.com.
