Dreier Hails Inclusion of REAL ID Act in Supplemental
Rules Committee to Consider Bill Today, House Vote Set for Tomorrow

May 4, 2005

WASHINGTON, DC - Congressman David Dreier (R-CA), Chairman of the House Rules Committee, today applauded the inclusion of the REAL ID Act in final version of the Iraq/Afghanistan supplemental appropriations bill filed last night and set to be considered by the Rules Committee tonight. The legislation will be voted on by the full House tomorrow and by the Senate next week.

“I’m very pleased the House and Senate came together to recognize the importance of REAL ID to our national security,” Dreier said. “This legislation is about our national security, plain and simple. And as I have said time and again, border security IS national security. Reforming our asylum laws, completing the border security fence, and strengthening the standards necessary for federal use of driver’s licenses are all critical to our homeland security efforts. We have kept a promise to the American people by pursuing these important priorities with the diligence necessary to secure their passage.”

Also part of the final version of the REAL ID Act included in the supplemental is the text of legislation Dreier introduced on the opening day of the 109th Congress, the Citizens and Legal Immigrants (CALI) Act, H.R. 100. The CALI Act will restore judicial review of immigration cases to a settled forum. In a 2001 case, INS v. St. Cyr, the Supreme Court concluded that criminal aliens could challenge removal orders by filing a habeas petition in a district court, affording them greater opportunities for judicial review and delaying their deportation. As a result, the federal court system has been overwhelmed with immigration related cases. A May 2, 2005 story in the Los Angeles Times outlined the problem, especially in California. According to the story, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has seen its immigration caseload "skyrocket" from 965 in the year ending June 30, 2001, to 4,835 cases in the year ending in June 2004. (A link to the story can be found below.) The CALI Act will help alleviate this problem by ensuring that criminal aliens cannot unfairly game our judicial system and restoring the fundamental purpose of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) that aliens who are harmful to our communities and national security be promptly removed.

Dreier said this vital reform will ease an unnecessary burden on our courts, and help root out potential terrorists attempting to exploit our justice system. “Criminal aliens do not deserve rights superior to legal immigrants or citizens,” Dreier said. “Passage of this reform will allow our court system to get out from under these excessive cases and get back to the work of pursuing justice on behalf of the American people."

DREIER SPEAKS ON HOUSE FLOOR: DIAL-UP / BROADBAND