05/11/07 Cranking up the immigration debate

Nevada Senator Harry Reid wants the debate over immigration reform to begin now. The Senate Majority Leader says there are many important issues that have to be resolved before a bill can be sent to the President this summer. First, he says, is border security. Second is the temporary worker program. REID "Finally, we have twelve million people in our country who are here with bad papers. We have to determine how we're going to make them productive citizens. The way things now look its going to take a long time. We're going to make sure they work, pay taxes, learn English, stay out of trouble." Idaho's Larry Craig has been embroiled in the immigration debate since the introduction of his AgJobs bill, a measure his critics claim is nothing more than an amnesty bill for illegal aliens. CRAIG "And I'm simply going to have to say that's going to be in the eye of the beholder. We're going to have a law that's enforceable." Craig has always maintained that Idaho and America need the immigrant labor workforce but he says a way has to be found to allow immigrants to work while not granting citizenship to those already here illegally. CRAIG "At the same time we want it to be legal and controlled." Craig does support the building of a fence along the US-Mexican border in urban areas where he says people can cross the border as easily "as walking across the street." Today's Idaho Ag News Bill Scott