After months of haggling and debate from both sides regarding the controversial topic of immigration reform, a group of bipartisan senators have come up with a proposal for fixing the immigration system--one that includes a path to citizenship, with better secured borders.
The plan--proposed by eight U.S. Senators, four being Democrats and four Republicans--was unveiled Monday before President Obama is scheduled to deliver a policy speech on immigration Tuesday in Las Vegas.
As per the guidelines outlined in the plan, undocumented immigrants would be allowed to register with the government, pay a fine, and given a conditional legal status that allows them to work. However, they would not be given any special expedited status when they apply to become permanent U.S. citizens.
In addition, the new proposal would also enhance border security and crack down on businesses that employ undocumented immigrants.
"Our legislation acknowledges these realities by finally committing the resources needed to secure the border, modernize and streamline our current legal immigration system, while creating a tough but fair legalization program for individuals who are currently here," the outline states. "We will ensure that this is a successful permanent reform to our immigration system that will not need to be revisited."
The legislation was drawn up by the so-called "Gang of Eight" that includes U.S. Senate Republicans Marco Rubio of Florida, John McCain and Jeff Flake of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, and Senate Democrats Charles Schumer of New York, Dick Durbin of Illinois, Michael Bennet of Colorado and Robert Menendez of New Jersey.
The proposal is significant as it is one of the first comprehensive outlined solutions proposed to the immigration question, which has become a topic of great discussion in the U.S. since November, when Latino voters overwhelmingly rejected the Republican Party at the election polls arguably due to their largely anti-immigration stance.
While the White House praised the group's efforts, a spokesman told Reuters that President Obama would not be satisfied until there was meaningful reform.
President Obama has issued similar statements after he proposed broad legislation earlier this month that would include a pathway to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants in the U.S.
The president "will continue to urge Congress to act until that is achieved," the spokesman said.
U.S. House Speaker John Boehner, Capitol Hill's top Republican, is not taking any position on the new proposal, a spokesman from his office, Michael Steel, telling Politico Monday, the Boehner "welcomes the work of leaders like [Florida] Sen. [Marco] Rubio on this issue, and is looking forward to learning more about the proposal in the coming days."
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