PHOENIX (By
Daniel Gonzαlez,
Arizona Republic) November 14, 2009 ―
First it was bank bailouts. Then
health-care reform. Now people are
organizing "tea parties" to rally
against illegal immigration.
A series of anti-illegal immigration tea
parties will be held today in cities
across the country, including one at the
state Capitol in Phoenix.
The rallies are aimed at drumming up
opposition to the comprehensive
immigration-reform bill Democrats in
Congress plan to introduce, possibly by
the end of this month.
With so many Americans out of work
because of the recession, it doesn't
make sense to legalize illegal
immigrants, said Paul Yoder, a spokesman
for American Citizens United, a Phoenix
group that is organizing today's tea
party at the Capitol.
"I think we have to give Americans
priority to these jobs," Yoder said.
Some state lawmakers and political
candidates who favor laws aimed at
driving illegal immigrants out of
Arizona will speak at the tea party, he
said.
Meanwhile, a coalition of labor groups,
business groups, immigrant advocates,
church organizations and law-enforcement
officials has launched another campaign.
Called Reform Immigration for America,
its aim is to pressure Congress to pass
a broad immigration-reform bill that
includes a legalization program for
illegal immigrants.
Ali Noorani, executive director of the
National Immigration Forum, a
pro-immigration group in Washington,
D.C., said given the state of the
economy, a legalization program will
continue to be the most contentious part
of immigration reform.
Critics labeled the idea amnesty in 2006
and 2007, when attempts to pass a bill
failed in Congress.
But Noorani said the jobs that illegal
immigrants perform have a multiplier
effect that helps drive the economy and
create more jobs for Americans.
"If you don't have someone to pick the
oranges, then you don't need someone to
pack the orange or deliver the orange or
sell the orange," Noorani said during a
meeting Friday with Arizona Republic
reporters and Editorial Board members.
Legalizing illegal immigrants would also
increase tax revenues since employers
now often pay the workers in cash, he
said.
The comprehensive immigration bill the
coalition is pushing will be based on
four principles: humane border and
interior enforcement of immigration
laws, family reunification, a
temporary-worker program and a
legalization program, one that requires
undocumented immigrants to pay fines and
learn English in exchange for a chance
at becoming citizens.
The coalition is organizing house
parties and town halls across the
country on Wednesday to increase public
support for a bill.
President Barack Obama has repeatedly
said he remains committed to immigration
reform, but the contentious issue has
taken a back seat to fixing the economy
and passing health-care reform.
On Friday, however, Homeland Security
Secretary Janet Napolitano suggested the
administration is getting closer to
tackling immigration reform.
During a speech at the Center for
American Progress, a liberal think tank,
Napolitano said the Obama administration
has met many of the goals for securing
the southwestern border set by Congress
in 2007.
At the time, Congress said the
government needed to gain better control
of illegal immigration along the
U.S.-Mexico border before a
comprehensive immigration-reform package
could be considered.
