Immigration reform topped the list of issues Congressman Jeb Hensarling addressed during a scheduled stop in Athens on Monday.

Mayor Randy Daniel introduced Hensarling to the audience and assured local residents "not to worry about our local representation in Washington."

Since being sworn in 2003, Hensarling has been an outspoken advocate for limited government and unlimited freedom, Daniel said.

The congressman said he is on break from Washington, D.C. and came to Athens to report on what has been going on there.

At the height of the issues now is the recent immigration bill, he said, and he came to Athens to talk about the recent debate.

"The bill seemed to enjoy the support of the president, but it did not enjoy my support," Hensarling said.

He said there are several reasons he did not support the bill, but at the top of the list is he believes immigration reform should start with border security.

The congressman said he believes border security must come first and in a post Sept. 11 world, America cannot tolerate porous borders.

"The bill promises border security by providing for things we already have," Hensarling said. "The bill provides for a 350 mile fence. We have provided for a 700 mile fence already. The bill also provides for 12,000 new border patrol agents. We have provided 15,000 and 3,000 new agents each year additionally."

Amnesty was another important issue for Hensarling. He said he would not support a program that gives advantages to illegal immigrants over those legally waiting for citizenship.

"Allowing illegal immigrants to cut in the citizenship line would be a slap in the face to those who come here legally," the congressman said. "America has always been a nation of immigrants, and as long as I am a member of Congress, I will fight to ensure that we remain a nation of legal immigrants."

He said he believes a temporary worker program would work and he would support it if, it was temporary, the immigrants were economic assets and the guest worker line to citizenship was separate from those legally waiting for citizenship.

For example, Hensarling said that illegal immigrants should not come to this country and enjoy the benefits of free education and free healthcare, without paying the appropriate taxes. He said the failed bill would have forgiven all back taxes under amnesty and this was not acceptable to him.

"I want America to be a land of immigrants — legal immigrants," Hensarling said.

Hensarling also said he believes we do not always need a legislative response, he said we need an enforcement response. "Every illegal immigrant is not a bad person, but they are breaking the law."

Hensarling said his first concern is ensuring the problem (illegal immigration) doesn’t get worse. He said America needs to get serious about employer sanctions.

He said the problem is, if employers overly pursue an illegal immigrant and the person in question is legal, the Department of Homeland Security will fine the company. Also, employers face civil lawsuits from civil rights activists for false accusations, Hensarling said.

The congressman said he wants a system where employers can call in and verify social security numbers and the employment status of potential employees.

He also believes a system with high employer fines and high profile prosecutions could help the current illegal immigration problem.

"If you reward illegal behavior, you encourage illegal behavior," Hensarling said. "American citizenship is a rare privilege and it ought to remain that way."