Just a couple of days shy of the March through America on March 21 in Washington, D.C. to put pressure for a comprehensive immigration reform, President Barack Obama met with both senators in charge of drawing up bipartisan legislation, a meeting cancelled Monday due to one of the senator’s itinerary conflicts.
Obama also received pro reform activists today that during past weeks have intensified the tone of their demands at the White House and towards Congress to present a draft of the project before March 21 and so they can begin the legislative process in the Senate panel for Immigration at the end of April, considering the reduced yearly electoral calendar in the course.
Following these two meetings, the White House gave a press conference and among other things, Obama declared “I’ve told both senators and community leaders that my commitment to a comprehensive immigration reform is unbreakable, and I will continue being your partner on this important effort.”
In this same way, Obama this afternoon will receive Congress Latino majority leader and even though the idea is to discuss a healthcare reform, it’s assumed that the immigration reform will be on the agenda.
Though the senators in charge of drawing up a bipartisan measure, Charles Schumer, New York democrat, and Lindsey Graham, South Carolina republican, assure that a consensus is on course, those who advocate for an immigration reform want to see concrete results. Reporters have also generated controversy over the potential measures that contemplate a plan for reform,like the inclusion of national identification card for all employees. Others speculate about the possibility for a comprehensive reform not to be considered
but individual immigration measures.
Graham also insists that any immigration project count on a second republican senator’s support, but until now they have been unsuccessful in getting it.
Schumer told Telemundo News Network that “it’s difficult, but we have to do our best to accomplish it (reform).”
And though the pressure of pro comprehensive reform groups is that there be concrete legislative action on the immigration forefront and not only intentions of demonstrating that something is being done, Schumer said that “if the Latino community wants to see who’s trying, what party is trying, what party is blocking (reform), well then it’s obvious.”
Nonetheless, the comprehensive immigration reform opposition comes from both democratic and republican elements.
The republican Graham, on his behalf, declared to Telemundo News Network that he can’t predict if the immigration reform will be settled this year primarily because the healthcare reform has robbed oxygen from other issues on the legislative agenda. He also added that Obama has to exercise more leadership to promote this issue in Congress.
There’s still no project, but there’s controversy by some measures that could be considered.
A couple of news media reported, for example, that the potential plan will consider an identification card in case of fraud using diverse biometric data like digital fingerprints for workers.
An article from UNIVISION.com indicates that “the document will include all ten digital legal worker’s fingerprints (citizen, permanent resident, temporary resident or alien with employment authorization given by the immigration service), reading of one of the eye’s iris, and other biometrics that will avoid falsification.”
But groups like American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), pro immigration groups, as well as legislators consider such card as an invasion of privacy.
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