It is being reported today that some immigrants are not renewing their
temporary work permits because some have the mistaken belief that they
will soon be on the path to becoming U.S. citizens, via the Senate's
amnesty program.

Tens of thousands of Honduran and Nicaraguan immigrants nationwide
risk losing their legal status in the United States today because they
have not renewed their temporary work permits ...

With the deadline approaching by the end of today, about half the
eligible applicants have yet to apply for renewal. They could lose
their jobs and face deportation, jeopardizing the livelihoods of
thousands of relatives here and in their homelands who depend on their
salaries. ...

In a speech yesterday our President gave more inane and lame excuses explaining why Americans should just accept the ridiculous amnesty bill produced by our Senate. He used a lot of his old talking points but added a few new ones that I found quite interesting.

From the Washington Times

President Bush yesterday rejected House Republicans' stance that illegal aliens must return home, calling it "wrong and unrealistic" and saying many will have to be allowed to stay.

Speaking to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a block from the White House, Mr. Bush also directly challenged businesses to hire only legal workers, and said those that don't should be prepared to face increased fines.

I'm sure the businesses that currently employ illegal immigrants are really shook up over this candy threat. Increased fines? Let's see, last year the businesses that hired illegals were fined a whopping sum of - ZERO dollars. So, increasing fines from zero is just downright laughable.

Looks like our Representatives have about a week to figure out the pork sausage pattie dumped on the House by the Senate.

President Bush wants to push the bill through by the deadline.

From the NYT's, title link:
"..."The House and Senate bill will require effort and compromise on both sides," Mr. Bush told a friendly audience gathered at the chamber's headquarters, across the street from the White House. "It's a difficult task. Yet the difficulty of this task is no excuse for avoiding it.

Whether Mr. Bush can bring his party's warring factions together remains to be seen. On one side are conservatives who support the House bill, which declares illegal immigrants felons and would have them deported. On the other are those, like the president, who prefer the Senate version, which would open the way for many of the estimated 11 million people living in the United States illegally to become citizens"
There are something like 10,000 bricks that have been sent to the House and the Senate to encourage that our elected representatives toughen up our border policy. I'm hoping that might make some kind of impression. Unfortunately, it's beginning to look like those bricks are more representative of the matter located between our elected representatives ears.

I have been waiting for this to break! Shhh, don?t tell anyone, I already knew about it.

From The Washington Times:

The long-fought Senate immigration bill that opponents say grants amnesty to 10 million illegal aliens is unconstitutional and appears headed for certain demise, Senate Republicans now say.

A key feature of the Senate bill is that it would make illegals pay back taxes before applying for citizenship, a requirement that supporters say will raise billions of dollars in the next decade.

There?s just one problem: The U.S. Constitution specifically prohibits revenue-raising legislation from originating in the Senate.

?All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives,? according to the ?origination clause? in Article I, Section 7.

When a lawyer for Estephanie Izaquirre, a parentless teenager from
Honduras, received an e-mail from an immigration official in Des Moines saying the girl
should come downtown and "complete the paperwork" Thursday, he thought that meant
she was about to get her green card.

Instead, a deportation officer arrested Izaquirre, five days after she graduated from East
High School in Des Moines.

"This was just calculated as hell, and it's hugely problematic," the lawyer, Jim Benzoni,
said. "Immigration services is using false inducements to get people in there. If our clients
are supposed to be telling the truth, why is the government not required to do the
same?"

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