Animosity and Amnesty

WHEN addressing immigration reform, President Bush repeatedly admonishes, “We need to do this without animosity and without amnesty.” The comprehensive bill he strongly supports and the contentious Senate debate it launched provide both, in abundance. The grand compromise reform fails his stated desire—and also fails to deliver on its stated promises.

Independent analyses of the bill find it unworkable, and recent Senate votes reveal its phony premises. Under the bill, millions of aliens will remain illegal. According to a recent analysis by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), 8.4 million of the estimated 12 million illegal aliens can be expected to gain legal status. The remaining 3.6 million illegal aliens would presumably either voluntarily return home, thereby proving that an attrition strategy works, or remain “in the shadows” while attempting to evade the kind of “mass deportation” the bill’s supporters maintain is wholly impractical.

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Kate O'Beirne

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WHEN addressing immigration reform, President Bush repeatedly admonishes, “We need to do this without animosity and without amnesty.” The comprehensive bill he strongly supports and the contentious Senate debate it launched provide both, in abundance. The grand compromise reform fails his stated desire—and also fails to deliver on its stated promises.

Independent analyses of the bill find it unworkable, and recent Senate votes reveal its phony premises. Under the bill, millions of aliens will remain illegal. According to a recent analysis by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), 8.4 million of the estimated 12 million illegal aliens can be expected to gain legal status. The remaining 3.6 million illegal aliens would presumably either voluntarily return home, thereby proving that an attrition strategy works, or remain “in the shadows” while attempting to evade the kind of “mass deportation” the bill’s supporters maintain is wholly impractical.