Democratic Senators On Judiciary Committee
Urge Thorough, Thoughtful Review Of
Comprehensive Immigration Reform
…Leading Judiciary Members Call On Majority
Leader
To Let Committee Finish Its Work
Rather Than Rushing To Pull Up Measures
Piecemeal On The Senate Floor
WASHINGTON
(Wednesday, March 15) – Leading Democratic
members of the Senate Judiciary Committee
Wednesday urged Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.)
to let the panel finish its work on a
comprehensive immigration reform bill instead of
pulling up parts of the bill for debate on the
Senate Floor.
Senators Patrick
Leahy (D-Vt.), the panel’s ranking member;
Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.); and Dianne Feinstein
(D-Calif.) sent a letter to Frist urging him to
reconsider his proposal to pull sections of an
immigration reform bill out of the Judiciary
Committee before the panel has had a chance to
completely consider and vote on the
comprehensive legislation. The Committee has
been considering a sweeping immigration proposal
sponsored by Chairman Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) for
the past several weeks.
Below is the
senators’ letter to Majority Leader Frist.
# # # # #
March 15, 2006
The Honorable
William H. Frist
Majority Leader
United States Senate
509 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Majority
Leader Frist:
We have read with
interest recent statements by several of our
respected Republican colleagues that an
immigration bill will be considered on the
Senate floor the week of March 27, 2006. We
applaud your willingness to take up this
important issue of vital national urgency and
commend your leadership.
We are concerned,
however that an immigration bill could be
debated on the floor even if that legislation is
not a complete product of the thoughtful
deliberations of the Senate Judiciary
Committee. It is our sincere hope that this
piecemeal approach does not occur. Immigration
reform is a broad and complex issue and deserves
the most thorough consideration that the Senate
has to offer. Arbitrary deadlines and
half-finished proposals serve neither the Senate
nor the country well.
The Judiciary
Committee has unique expertise on immigration
law and, under the leadership of Chairman
Specter, is working diligently to markup a
comprehensive immigration reform bill. While we
may not hold a uniform position on what the
ultimate substance of this bill should be, we
share the opinion that the issue should not be
considered in a rushed manner. The Senate would
be well served by the benefit of a complete
committee markup, even if a brief extension of
time is required to produce one. Indeed, the
institution of the Senate is weakened every time
the Committee structure is not fully utilized.
We all agree that
the Senate’s review of immigration law is long
overdue. We firmly believe that now is the time
to address this issue in a thorough and
deliberate manner. The Committee should continue
to move expeditiously through the Chairman’s
mark, and that upon completion of that process,
the Senate should quickly move to floor debate
of the bill.
We stand ready to
work with you to develop a consensus on this
matter and look forward to ensuring prompt
consideration of an immigration reform bill
through the regular procedures of the Senate.
Sincerely,
PATRICK
LEAHY
EDWARD M. KENNEDY
DIANNE FEINSTEIN
# # # # #
