FOR RELEASE: October 4, 2006

It is a shame that it has come to this, but the passage by the House of HR 4844 reflects how infiltrated our nation has become with illegal aliens.

The bill is known as the Federal Election Integrity Act. Its chief provision is that beginning with the elections in 2008, persons seeking to vote in a federal election will have to present a photo ID. By the elections of 2010, persons will have to present a photo ID that shows that they are United States citizens in order to vote in federal elections. Today, many states have made it easy for ineligible persons to register to vote, because in registering, one only needs to attest to his or her citizenship

It is a sign of the times that the absence of meaningful ID requirements in many states leaves our voting process vulnerable to fraud and allows legal votes to be cancelled out by illegally cast ballots. The need for a voter ID card for federal elections was spelled out clearly by the Commission on Federal Election Reform, chaired by former President Jimmy Carter and Former Secretary of States James Baker. The provisions of HR 4844 are aligned closely with the Commission’s recommendations. It requires states to demand proof of citizenship for registering to vote in federal elections, and then the photo ID must be presented upon voting.

A recent nationwide poll found 81 percent of those surveyed favoring an ID requirement for voting. A separate poll found 77 percent in support of the ID requirement.

On a unanimous vote, the House has adopted the Border Tunnel Prevention Act. This bill amends the federal criminal code to prohibit the construction or financing of an unauthorized tunnel or subterranean passage that crosses the international border between the United States and another country and imposes a 20-year prison term for such offense. Further, the bill imposes a 10-year prison term on any person who recklessly permits the construction or use of such a tunnel or passage on land that such person owns or controls. And, it doubles penalties for persons who use such a tunnel or passage to unlawfully smuggle an alien, illegal goods, controlled substances, weapons of mass destruction, or members of a terrorist organization.

Also, the House voted 277-to-140 to affirm that state and local law enforcement personnel have the inherent authority to investigate, identify, arrest, detain, or transfer to federal custody aliens in the United States (including the transportation of such aliens across state lines to detention centers) for purposes of assisting in the enforcement of U.S. immigration laws in the course of carrying out routine duties.

The bill also directs the Attorney General, subject to the availability of appropriations, to increase the number of U. S. attorneys employed to prosecute alien smuggling cases by at least 20 in Fiscal Year 2008-Fiscal Year 2013.

Please keep in touch with me on issues that are important to you. You may write Congressman Virgil Goode, 70 East Court Street, Room 215, Rocky Mount, VA 24151; or fax to 1-540-484-1459; or call toll-free to the Danville office, 1-800-535-4008.