Angie Craig: “the Senator from Arizona has come up with some fascinating and interesting explanations of why his is not and ours is…”

“the Senator from Arizona has come up with some fascinating and interesting explanations of why his is not and ours is amnesty. By that I simply mean there are a lot of people who believe that if people have broken the law and that you grant them any forgiveness whatsoever, that is amnesty. But now, according to Mr. Chambliss and Mr. Kyl, we have a whole new definition of why theirs is not, even though they grant those who have broken the law a blue card to continue to stay and work. They say there is a difference. You know, there really is not a difference in this respect. If I am not amnestied by the Chambliss-Kyl amendment, there is no stretch of the imagination that would suggest otherwise about the Craig-Kennedy bill. I do not believe our bill has amnesty, because I think when you ask someone who has broken the law to pay back to society and to limit their rights, then recognizing that they have done so and allowing them to earn that legal status--and certainly that is what we do in the Craig-Kennedy bill. We demand, if you will, 360 days over 3 to 6 years in the field, working hard, so you gain the right to apply for a green card. I do not call that amnesty; I call that hard-earned, labor-paid- for, to get the ability to stay and work. You can have your own thoughts about amnesty, but nowadays I am finding out anyone can have his or her own definition of amnesty. Amnesty is in the eye of the beholder.…”