Senate Votes on Immigration Proposals Amidst Military Spending Bill

The Senate has cleared a logjam of conflicting immigration proposals, paving the way for a vote on an $80 billion emergency supplemental military spending bill within the next two weeks. The vote came after a series of contentious amendments were proposed and voted on, with proponents of a broader foreign guest-worker program claiming symbolic victories despite the failure of their proposals to attach to the spending bill.

Key Takeaways:

• The Senate voted 94 to 6 to incorporate an amendment sponsored by Senator Barbara A. Mikulski, Democrat of Maryland, to expand the number of foreign workers that employers could hire for temporary seasonal jobs.
• The Senate voted 53 to 45 in favor of ending debate on a proposal by Senator Larry E. Craig, Republican of Idaho, and Edward M. Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts, to create a guest-worker program for agricultural workers that would be open to some currently illegal immigrants and provide a path to citizenship.
• The vote to close debate on a counterproposal that would have allowed foreigners to work on American farms for only nine months and required them to return home before applying for legal status failed, with 21 votes in favor and 77 votes against.
• Senator John Cornyn, Republican of Texas, said that President Bush's proposal for a broad guest-worker program is "offensive" because it tells temporary workers they are on a path to permanent residency and citizenship, which he believes is a "backdoor to illegal immigration."
• Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, and Senator Tom Coburn, Republican of Oklahoma, plan to propose an amendment to remove "nonessential pork barrel" projects from the supplemental spending bill, which includes items such as $10 million for a library at the University of Hawaii and $5 million for wind-energy research in the Dakotas.

Statistics:

• The Senate voted 94 to 6 in favor of incorporating an amendment related to temporary seasonal jobs.
• 53 senators voted in favor of ending debate on a proposal to create a guest-worker program for agricultural workers, while 45 senators voted against.
• 21 senators voted in favor of a counterproposal that would have allowed foreigners to work on American farms for only nine months, while 77 senators voted against.
• The Senate will meet later this month with their House counterparts to combine the two versions of the spending bill.
• The Senate version of the spending bill allows for more temporary workers, while the House version includes provisions aimed at tightening border security.

Sources:

• The New York Times, dated June 28, 2006
• The New York Times, dated June 29, 2006