WASHINGTON, Jun 12 (AFP): President George W Bush will make a new push Tuesday for a bill offering 12 million illegal immigrants a chance at US citizenship with an unusual visit to the Senate to prod his own party's legislators to get behind the proposal.
Just days after dubious Republicans in the Senate stalled the groundbreaking bill to deal with the huge presence of undocumented immigrants in the country, Bush is to attend the weekly Senate Republican policy lunch -- a closed-door affair where he will make brief remarks and then take questions, the White House said.
It will be the first time in his six year presidency Bush has joined the luncheon, underscoring the importance he is putting on the bill crafted together with Democrats but castigated by conservatives as an outright amnesty for illegal immigrants.
Eager for a major domestic policy victory before his term ends in January 2009, Bush telephoned key allies ahead of the meeting from his presidential Air Force One airplane after a week-long trip to Europe, a spokeswoman said.
He called Democratic Senators Ted Kennedy and Ken Salazar as well as Republican Jon Kyl for "a strategy to bring the bill back for more debate" after the measure collapsed last week, Dana Perino told reporters.
"He underscored his commitment to getting the bill done soon," she said.
Senate Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid, who withdrew the bill Thursday in the face of mounting opposition, and other top Democrats urged Bush in a letter Monday to push harder to overcome Republican resistance.
"Although we do not agree with every part of the compromise bill before the Senate, we remain committed to Senate passage of an immigration bill this year," they said in the letter.
"It will take stronger leadership by you to ensure that opponents of the bill do not block its path forward," they wrote.
Reid said he would bring the immigration issue back to the Senate before the next looming showdown over Iraq, when defence authorisation bills are due to be debated later this month. But he said that most Democrats had voted to proceed with the bill, compared to only seven Republicans.
Reid had pulled the bill after the Senate voted twice within nine hours not to move it towards a final vote as he had demanded.
Republican senators hinted that Bush might find it difficult to persuade lawmakers in his party to change their position on the issue.
"We respect the president, and I will listen carefully to him," Republican Lamar Alexander of Tennessee told US media. "But we all have our own minds on this subject."
Billed as a "grand bargain," the proposed law would grant a path to legal status for undocumented immigrants, establishing a merit-based points system for future immigrants, and create a low-wage temporary worker programme.
It also envisions a border security crackdown, punishment for employers who hire illegal immigrants and an attempt to wipe out a backlog of visa applications from those who have gone through legal channels.
Speaking in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, Bush expressed disappointment that the bill had collapsed but insisted he was "under no illusions" about its prospects.
"I'll be going to the Senate to talk about a way forward on the piece of legislation," he said. "I believe we can get it done. I'll see you at the bill signing."
If it eventually passes the Senate, the immigration bill is assured of a rocky welcome in the US House of Representatives, and then a combined bill would need to clear both chambers before going to the president.
Bush pushes to rescue US immigration overhaul
FE Team | Published: June 13, 2007 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00
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