Sen Sessions: ‘American People Dubious of Immigration Reform Talk’

Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), who serves as the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued a statement today, critical of recent suggestions that the Senate may take up immigration reform in the coming months. Sen. Sessions said that an amnesty would undermine the employment chances of the 25 million Americans looking for full-time work.

Here is Sen. Sessions’ statement in its entirety:

I am surprised by reports that the Democratic leadership plans to plow ahead with a comprehensive immigration overhaul this year. In the wake of unprecedented borrowing and spending, a bitterly partisan push to overhaul the nation’s health care system, and the House’s passage of an unpopular climate change bill, the American people are dubious about any talk of ramming through comprehensive reform. Doing so now would further divide the country and continue to distract the Congress from the issue of greatest concern to Americans: the economy.

One in ten Americans are unemployed. Wages are stagnant. The pace of job creation is too slow. In this context, there is little enthusiasm in Congress to pass legislation that would legalize millions of unlawful residents to compete with out-of-work Americans for needed jobs, further driving down pay and draining government resources. The Senate and the American people soundly rejected that approach at a time when the economy was doing far better, and they will again today. One has to ask: are members raising the idea of comprehensive reform now because they believe the majority of Americans truly want it, or because it serves a specific political purpose in a tough election year?

There is a better approach. Congress and the President should immediately take targeted steps to deal with the crisis at the border, increase the usage of the E-Verify program, and enhance prosecutions of employers who knowingly hire illegal workers. These policies, which would restore lawfulness to our system and facilitate economic recovery, have the support of the American people and senators on both sides of the aisle.

This issue is too important to use as a political football. It deserves careful study and thoughtful debate. Opposition to comprehensive reform—which will likely include some form of mass amnesty—cuts across party lines, regions, and demographics. I doubt that in this economy, and in the wake of health care reform, the Senate will rush to again ignore the wishes of a majority of the country.

Sen. Sessions was the keynote speaker at the annual NumbersUSA symposium in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday.