Washington – Senate architects of a White House-backed immigration bill fought back assaults on its centerpiece provisions Wednesday in a marathon day marked by impassioned debate and fraying tempers.
Many Democrats were angered by the surprise passage of an amendment by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, that would allow law enforcement officers to inspect applications of immigrants who applied for – but were rejected – for the new legalization program.
Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., charged that the amendment “attacks the whole issue of confidentiality for these undocumented aliens” and would discourage illegal immgrants from stepping forward.
Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Barack Obama, D-Ill., engaged in a testy late-night exchange after Graham told the Democratic presidential contender that he was endangering the compromise through a proposed amendment that would phase out a point-based merit system for future immigration.
Saying that that he and other Republican supporters of the bill had endured the wrath of their constituents by endorsing the legalization of illegal immigrants, Graham told Obama, “You’re going to destroy this deal.”
Later, he added, “So when you’re out on the campaign trail, my friend, tell them about why we can’t come together.”
“The notion that somehow that guts the bill or destroys the bill is simply disingenuous,” Obama countered. “And it’s engaging in the sort of histrionics that is entirely inappropriate for this debate.”
The legislation, which has emerged as President Bush’s top domestic priority, would legalize up to 12 million illegal workers, create a temporary guest-worker program, toughen border security and crack down on employers who hire illegal immigrants. A bipartisan group of senators that forged the bill is fighting against any amendments that threaten to unravel the fragile coalition.
Working until nearly midnight, senators dealt with more than 15 amendments as they moved into home-stretch mode to try to complete action on the bill, possibly by early next week.
The Senate was expected to vote today on a motion by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., to begin cutting off debate.
Senators earlier defeated an amendment by Cornyn that would have denied legalization for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants who defied deportation orders in the past or re-entered the country after being deported.
