From Your World w/ Neil Cavuto:

DAVID ASMAN, GUEST HOST: Question: Will tonight`s speech by President Bush be enough to galvanize the GOP on the immigration issue? The Senate bill, as you just heard, would provide a major path to citizenship, while a Republican-backed House bill would treat illegals as felons.

So, can Republicans unite on this issue?

With us now, Peter King. He`s chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security, which, of course, is very much wrapped up in this issue.

So, Congressman King, is the president coming out too soon? Does he have a coherent package to tell the nation about?

REP. PETER KING (R-NY), HOMELAND SECURITY COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: David, I`m looking forward to the president`s speech.

I think, if the reports about using the National Guard are true, that is going to be a very positive step. But I have to see exactly how the National Guard is going to be integrated into border security, what role they are going to play vis-a-vis the Border Patrol. Also, I want to see what the other aspects of the president`s speech are. Is he going to talk about cracking down on employers who hire illegals? What is going to happen to those who are here now?

So, I -- I think we really have to wait and see what the speech says. I think this definitely is the major issue in the country today. It is an issue that I have never seen such an interest by Americans on any one issue, the way there is right now in illegal immigration.

You know, we had Dubai ports. That was like a two- or three-week issue. But I`m talking about, for at least the last year of my district, this is what people are talking about, illegal immigration.

ASMAN: And -- and you`re a long way from the border. New York isn`t so close.

I don`t know if you just heard. We had Sheriff Arpaio on. Maricopa is only 60 miles from the border. The fact is, those folks on the ground near the border or on the border, they are not getting a lot of help from the feds. Does -- does the president -- is the president going to talk at all about that?

KING: I think the president is going to have to show what additional role the federal government is going to play, because, listen, I heard what the sheriff said. I think he is doing a very good job.

But it`s such a large number of illegals coming across the border, that the, you know, local police and the local officials can`t do it on their own. And even though my district is far from the border -- it`s thousands of miles from the Mexican border -- the reality is that I had an awful lot of people in my district that were killed on September 11.

And many of my constituents see border security as a homeland security issue, because they -- they realize, since September 11, if we can`t control who is coming across our border, we just leave ourselves open to another terrorist attack.

So, it`s not just a social and economic issue. To me, ever since September 11, it has also become a homeland security issue.

ASMAN: Well, will the -- the limited number of National Guard that we have been hearing about, maybe 1,000 or a couple of thousand, so -- is that going to be enough secure our 2,000-mile border?

KING: You know, the importance of it may be the symbolism of having the federal troops involved.

That`s why it`s important for the president really to spell it out. And I`m reserving judgment on that until I hear his speech tonight. But it`s -- again, it`s not enough to say we will use the National Guard. We want to see how many they`re going to be, how well-trained they`re going to be for this. I mean, they`re very, very well-trained as soldiers. They`re very well-trained even for natural disasters, like earthquakes and forest fires.

But, again, as far as how they are going to be coordinated and adapted into working with the Border Patrol, the president is going to have to lay that out, or he`s going to have to lay out some kind of a timeline.

So, again, I`m optimistic, but I`m really reserving judgment until I hear the speech and how it fits into an overall immigration policy, as far as those who are already here illegally.

ASMAN: Well, Congressman, I know -- I know you`re being fair. You want to wait until the president speaks before you make any kind of criticisms of something we have only heard rumors about.

But, if you had your choice, what would you do? Would you have the National Guard on every inch of that border for all time?

KING: I would use as much of the National Guard as we can.

And I would also have them working very closely with the Border Patrol. I mean, the Border Patrol is exceptionally well-trained. These guys are so -- and women -- are so professional. I met with Chief Aguilar. I mean, they are really the -- the best.

(CROSSTALK)

KING: ... need more...

ASMAN: But they`re terribly overworked, as you well know, Congressman.

KING: Absolutely.

So, I think, in the long run, the answer is to have far more Border Patrol officers. we need a lot more than we have right now.

But the National Guard can play a role. Listen, we`re never going to have enough troops to put all along the border. That`s why we have to get as many Border Patrol agents as we can, use the National Guard where it`s effect, and, probably most importantly of all, go after the employers who are hiring illegal immigrants. That would dry up the job market and take away the incentive for people to come across the border.

ASMAN: All right, Congressman Peter King, I know you are going to wait until the president speaks.

KING: Thank you.

ASMAN: Perhaps, tomorrow, you can come on and tell us what you think.

Peter King from New York, thanks very much.