Chris Dodd: “The other provision I wish to address in the brief time I have available goes beyond the border security issue that the…”

“The other provision I wish to address in the brief time I have available goes beyond the border security issue that the Specter amendment clearly addresses. Individuals have come to our country looking for work, and we know from surveys that 94 percent of undocumented males in this country are in fact working. These are not unemployed people who are looking for first-time jobs; these are people with jobs who saw a better opportunity in coming across our borders. I know it has been said, but every one of us here can tell family stories going back a generation or more, regardless of where we have come from, on why our forebears came here. Mostly it was for economic reasons, in the past, or political reasons that made it difficult for our forebears to remain in the countries of their birth. I acknowledge that people have come here illegally. That is wrong, and we need to put a stop to it. The Specter amendment also acknowledges that fact. It doesn't give these people a free ride at all. Instead, it would penalize illegal immigrants by requiring undocumented workers to pay fines, pay all back taxes, submit themselves to background checks, and learn English. But then it does allow them to move out of that status. That is one of the differences.…”