On The Issues »
Immigration

Illegal Immigration

I support increasing legal immigration, while vigorously reducing illegal immigration.

The first responsibility of a nation is to protect its borders. As a nation of laws, we must defend our borders and also enforce all our immigration, employment and tax laws.

An underground economy corrupts our society and places additional burdens on those who play by the rules, so we must ensure businesses hire legal residents and pay all required taxes. To assist employers, we should establish a tamper proof Social Security card to be used by all Americans and legal immigrants.

At the same time, one of America's strengths is the continual flow of new immigrants who take jobs others don't want and see opportunities others ignore. I believe we should open our doors to more legal immigrants and allow them guest worker privileges and the opportunity to study here.

The hard issue is how to deal with the 13 million immigrants who have come here illegally. The fact is we are not going to send them home because it would not be practical or humane. I believe we should allow these immigrants to stay and work here legally, but not put them on a path to citizenship.

I oppose granting illegal immigrants amnesty by giving them a path to citizenship unless they go home, apply for legal entry, and wait in line like everyone else who plays by the rules.

To enhance our border security and strengthen our immigration laws as a first step toward comprehensive immigration reform, I am an original cosponsor of H.R. 2954, the Secure Borders FIRST (For Integrity, Reform, Safety, and antiterrorism) Act. This legislation will crack down on employers who hire illegal immigrants by requiring increasing fines for businesses that continue to hire illegal immigrants. It also creates a machine-readable tamper-resistant Social Security card to aid employers in employment eligibility verification.

H.R. 2954 improves coordination across federal agencies to identify those here illegally and those who hire them. It requires the Department of the Treasury to alert the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) when it receives a tax return from any employer showing wages paid to an alien unauthorized to work in the United States. The Secretary must also notify the employer and employee that the employee must be terminated if the employee does not contest the accuracy of the notice.

H.R. 2954 also requires the Social Security Administration (SSA) to notify DHS of any earnings reported on a social security number indicating that the holder is not authorized to work. SSA shall also provide the relevant information to DHS when a number is used with multiple names or if more than one person reports earnings for an individual in a single year.

In addition, H.R. 2954 establishes minimum security standards for birth certificates to be accepted by the federal government.

The legislation will require DHS to achieve operational control of the United States borders by 2013; authorizes additional border patrol agents and surveillance equipment on our borders; requires the construction of additional fencing on our southern border; and requires the completion of US-VISIT biometric exit and entry system for air, sea, and land ports-of-entry by the end of 2008. Full implementation of US-VISIT in particular is critical to our ability to make sure that those who come here legally for visits return home.

H.R. 2954 will also establish a $250 million grant program to provide for the reimbursement to states for the procurement of facilities and technology directly related to apprehending and detaining immigration law violators, and makes an alien's third drunk driving conviction grounds for removal from the United States.

Finally H.R. 2954 establishes English as the official language of the government of the United States.

Regretfully, part of the problem we have encountered with immigration is due to the Mexican government. It is important we stand up to the Mexican government, which not only promotes illegal immigration, but also demands amnesty for illegal Mexicans while advocating open borders with the United States. I share the anger expressed by many residents of Connecticut's Fourth Congressional District when I see illegal immigrants marching our streets and demanding rights while waving foreign flags. In my judgment, these immigrants are not even guests and do not have the right to demand anything but to be treated humanely.

You may be interested to know, I support making English the official language of the United States government, and am a cosponsor of H.R. 997, the English Unity Act, which is legislation that would do so. While we should encourage all Americans to speak other languages, it is imperative American citizens have schools that teach courses in English, signs that are written in English and a government that conducts its business in English.

I also believe we can't continue to grant automatic U.S. citizenship to the children of illegal immigrants, and I am cosponsoring a constitutional amendment and legislation to do so. I believe a person born in the United States should only become citizen if a parent is a U.S. citizen, is lawfully present in the United States or has lawful immigration status at the time of the birth.

While the problem of immigration is not an easy issue, it is imperative we do everything we can to find common ground and resolve this crisis.

Real ID Act

I voted for and support the REAL ID Act , which passed the House by a vote of 368 to 58 and was signed into law by President Bush on May 11, 2005. The REAL ID Act establishes and implements regulations for state drivers' licenses and identification document security standards due to take effect in May 2008. This legislation also helps to prevent terrorists from abusing the asylum laws.

This legislation includes important provisions in the effort to decrease illegal immigration and secure our homeland. First, the REAL ID Act requires that all states must require proof of lawful presence in the U.S. for their drivers' licenses to be accepted as identification for federal purposes.

In Connecticut, we take some strong steps to ensure the integrity of our identification cards. To receive a driver's license in Connecticut, you must prove you are a legal resident of the state. And you are not a legal resident of the state if you're not legally present in the United States. Period.

This is common sense to me. Drivers' licenses are verifiable forms of identification in the United States. Providing such identification cards to people who are illegally present in our country is a serious concern.

The problem is that not all states maintain Connecticut's high standard. Someone who is illegally present in the United States and takes advantage of a weak law in another state can obtain a driver's license and use the document to identify him or herself in Connecticut. They can also use that document to access federal buildings, rent a vehicle or get on a plane. Tightening access to state-issues identification cards is an important and necessary improvement to our homeland security.

Second, the REAL ID Act enacts significant asylum reform. This legislation ensures immigration judges can deny asylum claims on the basis of adverse credibility determinations. It also prevents the practice of granting asylum to applicants with ties to terrorist organizations.

Third, the REAL ID Act authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security to waive federal laws necessary to ensure the completion of the San Diego border fence, which has taken more than eight years because of ongoing litigation. You may be interested to know, Congressman Sam Farr offered an amendment striking this provision because it would also allow the Secretary to build a border fence anywhere for purposes of national security and waive environmental laws and safeguards. I voted for the Farr amendment, but it failed by a vote of 179 to 243.

Finally, the REAL ID Act provides reforms to ensure the prompt removal of terrorists and criminal aliens from the United States, after proper judicial review.

The 2007 Senate Immigration Bill

I would oppose the comprehensive immigration legislation considered on the Senate floor in 2007 if it were brought to the House floor for my consideration. I favor increasing legal immigration, while vigorously reducing illegal immigration. While I support immigration reform, I would not support the Senate bill because of three primary concerns.

First, I believe we should not consider a program to legalize anyone who came to the United States illegally until we have stemmed the flow of illegal immigration. The primary responsibility of a nation is to protect its borders. As a nation of laws, we must defend our borders and also enforce all our immigration, employment and tax laws.

Second, while I was pleased the Senate compromise includes an additional $4.4 billion for border security and interior enforcement, I am concerned there is little agreement in what initiatives the money would be used for. We need to gain operational control of our borders and ports and improve our ability to account for those that who come here legally and be sure they leave when their visit is over.

Third, I am concerned the Senate proposal provides illegal immigrants an advantage in gaining citizenship over those who have waited in line and played by the rules. The Senate approach requires those who have a Z-visa to wait for the visa backlog to be cleared before they could apply for immigrant status from their home country, which I support. But the bill also provides illegal immigrants extra points, based on possessing a Z-visa.

Our nation needs to come together and resolve the immigration issue.

H.R. 4088, the Secure America Through Verification and Enforcement Act

I am a cosponsor of H.R. 4088, a three-point plan to reduce illegal immigration in America. The legislation would better secure our borders by increasing border patrol agents by 8,000, while utilizing new technology and infrastructure.

H.R. 4088 also creates a pilot program to increase aerial surveillance, satellite, and equipment sharing between the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Defense to save taxpayer dollars. The bill will make work authorization verification mandatory and expand the E-Verify program, which provides employers with an inexpensive, quick, and accurate way to verify employee eligibility. Currently the program is voluntary.

H.R. 4088 also would increase investigative abilities of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency by employing more agents and training additional state and local law enforcement personnel. It will also expedite the removal of illegal aliens by expanding detention capacity and increasing the number of Federal District Court Judges.

H-1B and L-1 Temporary Worker Visas

I support creating a floating cap for H-1B visas that can appropriately respond to the conditions of the U.S. labor market.

In my judgment, a static cap on the number of H-1B and other employment-based visas is counter-productive. When our economy is good and unemployment is low, it is beneficial to have a higher number of work visas to meet the needs of American employers. When our economy is less strong and Americans are having difficulty finding jobs, our government is harming our own citizens by allowing employers to bring in foreign workers to do jobs that Americans are willing to do.

A labor shortage in the late 1990s, particularly in high-technology fields, prompted Congress to temporarily increase the number of H-1B visas. This increase, which expired on October 1, 2003, gradually raised the H-1B cap from 65,000 to 195,000. When this legislation expired, the cap returned to the original limit of 65,000. No legislation has been introduced to extend the increased cap.

The economic prosperity of the 1990s fueled a drive to increase the levels of employment-based immigration. During that period, a scarcity of trained American workers threatened our nation's economic growth. H-1B visas enabled American technology firms to recruit and retain educated and skilled foreign workers, provided there was a demonstrated labor shortage among American workers.

During the last Congress, I was an original cosponsor of H.R. 2702, the L-1 Non-Immigrant Reform Act. This legislation makes comprehensive reforms to the laws governing L-1 visas, which are used to temporarily transfer managers and executives from a foreign country to the United States.

I am concerned multinational corporations are abusing these visas. H.R. 2702 limits L-1 visas to 35,000 per year, prohibits granting an L-1 visa to any corporations that has recently laid off an American worker, limits the number of years L-1 visa holders may stay in the United States, and prohibits corporations from outsourcing L-1 visa holders as subcontractors.

Times have changed, and our economy has changed. It is imperative that we closely monitor the workforce needs of American businesses, and adjust our employment-based immigration laws accordingly.

Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP)

I support efforts of the United States to work in partnership with our neighbors, Canada and Mexico, to develop policies that will promote legitimate trade and enhance our national security. I do not believe work done by the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) would or could erode our national sovereignty because none of its efforts can supersede the United States Constitution.

The SPP is a high-level working group between the United States, Canada and Mexico that can identify and resolve unnecessary obstacles to trade and help improve our emergency response and border security, thus benefiting and protecting Americans.

I support efforts to expand trading opportunities for American businesses. Expanding trade is critical to strengthening our economy. This is especially true in Connecticut, where businesses exported $12.2 billion worth of goods in 2006.

The SPP is working to improve the security of all three countries by developing plans and policies to allow for collaboration on issues like emergency management; influenza pandemics including avian influenza; energy security; and improved border security.