Washington – President Bush urged lawmakers Saturday to “summon the political courage” to support his top domestic priority, an immigration overhaul that is hanging by a thread in Congress.
“We have an obligation to solve problems that have been piling up for decades,” Bush said in his weekly radio address. “The status quo is unacceptable.”
A fragile bipartisan compromise on immigration known as the “grand bargain” is due to come back before the Senate as early as this week.
After critics sidelined the bill two weeks ago, it is being considered under an agreement to allow votes on a limited number of amendments.
Many business groups, hungry to fill low-wage jobs, support the bill, while many social conservatives have denounced it as amnesty.
The bill’s backers – including Bush – fear that any radical changes to the compromise would derail its already tenuous chances of getting through Congress. The House has yet to draft its version.
Bush publicly signed on to a plan for $4.4 billion in immediate funding for border security and workplace enforcement.
In his radio address, Bush stressed the enforcement provisions, which must be in place before the temporary worker program or new route for legal status becomes operational.
“I understand that many Americans have concerns about immigration reform – especially about the federal government’s ability to secure the border,” Bush said. “So this bill puts the enforcement tools in place first.”
