Pro-Amnesty Lawmakers Preparing To Offer Citizenship To Millions More Illegal Aliens; Lou Barletta Interview
ROMANS: Lawmakers tonight are preparing to make it easier for millions of illegal aliens to stay in this country and eventually become U.S. citizens. A group of senators and congressmen are discussing legislation that would extend amnesty and ease residency requirements for illegal aliens seeking citizenship. Casey Wian reports.</s>CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Since the day Democrats won control of Congress, lawmakers favoring illegal alien amnesty have wasted no time flexing their muscles. First, the incoming chair of the House Homeland Security Committee vowed to kill funding for the border fence and backed a scheme critics call amnesty.</s>REP. BENNIE THOMPSON (D), MISSISSIPPI: We need a comprehensive border security and immigration plan, not a piecemeal plan.</s>WIAN: Then, incoming Senate majority leader Harry Reid claimed an amnesty mandate from Hispanic voters.</s>SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MINORITY LEADER: We won big-time with the Hispanics. We won because they accepted what we were trying to do: comprehensive immigration reform.</s>WIAN: Now four key Democrat and Republican lawmakers are discussing amnesty for as many as five million additional illegal aliens. Senators Ted Kennedy and John McCain and Congressmen Luis Gutierrez and Jeff Flake are considering a new immigration bill that would weaken even the pro-illegal alien legislation passed by the Senate in May. That bill sought to authorize a path to citizenship for seven million illegal aliens who have been in the country for at least five years. Another five million here two to five years would have been required to leave temporarily. They could apply for amnesty as long as they paid back taxes and did not have serious criminal records. But congressional staffers now confirm the four lawmakers are discussing eliminating that requirement and allowing all qualified illegal aliens who have been in the U.S. at least two years to immediately get on a path to citizenship. Senator Kennedy says he's "... very hopeful about this, both in terms of the substance and the politics of it." A Kennedy staffer says he's optimistic in part because President Bush continues to be a vocal supporter of the so-called comprehensive approach.</s>GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I strongly believe that we can and must get a comprehensive immigration plan on my desk this year.</s>WIAN: However, Senator John Cornyn, a key proponent of strong border security, calls proposals to kill the border fence or expand citizenship eligibility nonstarters.</s>WIAN: Now, the previous Senate plan was criticized by activists on both sides of the illegal immigration debate as unworkable because it would have likely encouraged many more illegal aliens to commit document fraud, trying to prove that they're either long-term residents or workers in the United States. Of course, that same thing can be said about this current proposal -- Christine.</s>ROMANS: So, instead of trying to prevent document fraud, then what you do is say, OK, we'll put everybody in the same path to citizenship. That seems -- that seems like it could be very hard to find any kind of consensus on that kind of a deal. How close is this to being a done deal, then?</s>WIAN: It's not very close at all. Although supporters of this deal say they're very optimistic that it will happen. They do admit that they will run into a lot of opposition in Congress. Supporters say that one key is going to be President Bush's level of support for this proposal. The White House would not comment on this specific proposal, would only say it's looking forward to working with the new Congress -- Christine.</s>ROMANS: And the president signed the border fence bill.</s>WIAN: He sure did. And it sure seems clear now that the new leadership in Congress is committed to not funding that border fence bill. So who knows where we go from there?</s>ROMANS: All right. Casey Wian. Thank you, Casey. Two Long Beach, California, police officers tonight are in critical but stable condition after being shot. A manhunt is under way for a suspect who may be in this country illegally. The officers were shot during a traffic stop. According to the Long Beach police chief, the suspect, with a long criminal history, has been deported at least once. The chief said it was unclear how that suspect reentered the country. The city of Escondido, California, has yielded to legal pressure in its efforts to crack down on illegal immigration. City officials have dropped their plans to enforce a law that would prevent landlords from renting to illegal aliens. Escondido faced a federal lawsuit from illegal alien advocacy groups and the American Civil Liberties Union, but another city, Hazleton, Pennsylvania, remains unbowed to ACLU pressure as its case moves through the courts. Bill Tucker reports.</s>BILL TUCKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The city of Hazleton, Pennsylvania, is vowing to fight on in its efforts to crack down on illegal aliens. Hazleton's up against a formidable foe, the American Civil Liberties Union, which has deep pockets lined by anonymous donors and an army of lawyers. In its fight, the city of Hazleton is outgunned on the legal front by more than four to one. The mayor of Hazleton, Lou Barletta, admits his opponents to have told him straight to his face they will bankrupt the city if that they have. That's the type of intimidation that cities around the country are facing when they take on illegal immigration on the local front. But Mayor Barletta says that scare tactics haven't deterred him yet. He says, "This is one small city that won't back down. We will fight this to the highest court in the land if we must." To help pay for the fight, the town started the Web site smalltowndefenders.com. The town has received just over $50,000 in donations through it. Virtually all of those donations have been in $10 and $20 increments. The largest, though, was a $10,000 donation from Joey Vento, owner of Geno's cheesesteaks in Philadelphia. It's not nearly enough. Advocates of cities and towns wanting to pass legislation dealing with the rising number of illegal aliens in their community say costs are a matter of perspective.</s>MIKE HETHMON, IMMIGRATION REFORM LAW INST.: The costs of doing nothing far outweigh any purported benefits from burying your head in the sand and avoiding legal fees.</s>TUCKER: Ask Hazleton's mayor for an example of such costs and he points to education costs and police overtime. (on camera): Nevertheless, the number of cities willing to take on the issue of illegal immigration is dwindling in the face of well- held organizations who stand ready to serve as advocates for people with illegal standing. Bill Tucker, CNN, New York.</s>ROMANS: We'll have more tonight on the battle against illegal immigration and the rising cost for local communities that choose to fight back. The mayor of Hazleton, Lou Barletta, will join us later on in the broadcast. Two groups that support illegal aliens today filed a suit against a Texas town that passed a law banning landlords from renting to illegal aliens. Farmers Branch passed that law last month to control problems it says are caused by illegal immigration. The suit filed against the town claims the measure violates federal law and forces landlords to act as immigration agents. Still ahead here tonight, an American company will build a billion-dollar computer chip plant, but it won't be in this country. We'll have a report on what country is reaping the benefits. A Coast Guard plan to modernize its fleet has turned into a nightmare for both the Coast Guard and taxpayers. We'll have the details. And there's an increase in the number of illegal sales of nuclear material. Are terrorists buying? We'll have a report. Stay with us.