My senator answers me (website, illegal immigrants, laws, immigrate)

[mollies mom]

Below is a copy of the email my senator just sent to me, I had been emailing her about the vote on cloture..........
__________________________________________________ ______________
Thank you for contacting me to express your concerns about the immigration reform bill that the U.S. Senate recently debated. I appreciate hearing from you on this very important issue.



At the outset, I wanted to let you know that I voted against cloture on the immigration reform bill, which prevented it from coming to a vote on the floor of the U.S. Senate. I voted “no” because the floor debate and amendment process failed to produce a balanced bill.



I was especially concerned that the guest worker program proposed in the bill was virtually unenforceable and that its structure did little to help employers short on skilled workers. Instead, it encouraged overstaying and more illegal behavior. In addition, the legalization rules in the bill gave greater preference for those in the country illegally than for authorized guest workers or family members of U.S. citizens who are trying to immigrate legally. To me, that was fundamentally unfair. If we provide a path to earned citizenship, the first people in line should be those who have played by the rules and followed the law.



Furthermore, since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the citizens of Louisiana have seen the Department of Homeland Security be unwilling or unable to implement quick and effective reform when it is needed or directed by Congress. This bill called upon the agency to absorb yet another hefty responsibility with little consideration for the resources, accountability, and a realistic time line necessary to make it happen. In light of our experiences in Louisiana, I had serious reservations whether the Department of Homeland Security would have been able to implement many of the reforms set forth in the bill in such a tight time frame.



Throughout the debate over the last several weeks, I tried to improve the bill through the amendment process. For example, I voted for the Dorgan Amendment to eliminate the temporary guest worker program and for the Bingaman Amendment to cut the number of temporary guest workers from 400,000 to 200,000 per year, which passed the Senate.



I also supported an amendment to eliminate the portion of the bill that would have legalized currently illegal immigrants residing in the country. Finally, I voted to strengthen the border security triggers that must be in place before the temporary guest worker program can begin. Unfortunately, these measures failed to garner the necessary number of votes to be included in the legislation.



I remain committed to providing every necessary resource to enforce our immigration laws and to help American workers and businesses to prosper and thrive. I appreciate the opportunity to hear from you about this important matter, and I hope you will continue to contact me on issues of mutual concern. Please feel free to also visit my website at http://www.senate.gov/~landrieu (broken link) for more information on legislative affairs.



With warmest regards, I am



Sincerely,

A

Mary L. Landrieu



United States Senator

[njkate]

Hmmm it was nice you received an answer I wonder who wrote it as I don't think Mary with her "deer in the headlights stare" could write something like that.

The only reason she voted as such is because the good people of the state of Louisiana were vocal on this issue...kudos to y'all

[faith10]

Good letter from Ms. Landrieu! Surprisingly, I got a letter from D. Feinstein on July 10 but that was written on June 22 about the 'current immigration debate now going on in Congress' and her version of the bill. Guess this shows there was a large backlog due to so many of us asking her not to vote for the bill?