Russ Feingold: “this was a truly historic week for the Senate. With passage of the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006, S.…”

“this was a truly historic week for the Senate. With passage of the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006, S. 2611, we have succeeded in maintaining several key components of the bill that passed out of the Judiciary Committee 2 months ago-- components that I believe are crucial to fixing our broken immigration system. For starters, supporters of comprehensive reform in the Senate banded together to defeat efforts to remove or further weaken provisions in this bill that will allow the estimated 11 million to 12 million undocumented immigrants currently living in the United States to earn legal status. As both the President and the Secretary of Homeland Security have said, mass deportation is not a realistic option. Neither is amnesty. This legislation would require those who are here illegally to come forward, pay hefty fines, pay taxes, learn English and civics, work, and wait in the back of the line--before earning the privilege of permanent resident status and ultimately a path to citizenship if they choose to pursue it. These core provisions remain in the bill, and that is critical. However, I am disappointed in the changes to the legalization process that were made as part of the Hagel-Martinez compromise when the bill was first taken up on the Senate floor in April. The compromise would treat differently those people who have been here for more than 5 years and those who entered the country illegally in the last 2 to 5 years.…”