Adopted June 19, 2006
We, the undersigned conservative leaders, oppose any amnesty or guest worker plans like the Senate bill (S. 2611), the Pence bill, or any other such proposals.

The Heritage Foundation estimates the Senate bill will bring in at least 60 million foreigners during the next 20 years.

If the demographics of the so-called temporary workers are similar to those of the illegal aliens already here, more than half will be high school dropouts. They will work low-paying jobs that require payment of little or no income tax. They will be 50 percent more likely to receive government benefits than those in non-immigrant households. And 42% of their children will be born out-of-wedlock — but all their children born in the U.S. will automatically become American citizens.

The cost of the Senate amnesty for illegal immigrants alone would be $50 billion a year for entitlements, including Medicaid, Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, Earned Income Tax Credit (cash handouts as much as $4,400 a year to low-wage households), the WIC program, food stamps, public housing, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, and federally funded legal representation.

Any amnesty would move America toward a future like France, which is staggering under the burden of "guest" workers who never went home.

The Senate proposal has three main features that, together, will cause the illegal immigration problem to reach critical mass:

1. AMNESTY: The proposal grants legalization to 85% of the nation's current illegal aliens. The Senate bill repeats the mistakes of the Simpson-Mazzoli amnesty bill of 1986. It also provides an amnesty for employers who have hired illegal immigrants.
   
   
2. PERMANENT "TEMPORARY" WORKERS: The proposal sets up a so-called "temporary guest worker" plan for individuals who will be here neither temporarily nor as guests. The so-called guest workers will be given new "H-2C" visas that they can convert to legal permanent status with green cards. After five years, they will be eligible to become U.S. citizens. In the first year this scheme is in effect, the U.S. will import 200,000 new foreigners on H-2C visas.
   
   
3. FAMILY CHAIN MIGRATION: The number of immigrants will accelerate as "family chain migration" allows more new residents to bring in more and more relatives. The H-2Cers can immediately bring in their family members on H-4 visas, without any health requirements, and they will also get permanent legal residence and citizenship.
   
   After the so-called temporary workers and their spouses become citizens, they can bring in their parents as permanent residents on the path to citizenship. Although the parents have never paid into Social Security, they will be eligible for Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income benefits. Siblings and adult children and their families will be given preference in future admissions.
   
   

In addition, the Senate bill gives so-called temporary workers preferences that American citizens do not enjoy. They can't be fired from their jobs except for cause. They must be paid the prevailing wage. They can't be arrested for other civil offenses if they are stopped for traffic violations. Also, these illegal aliens are forgiven two years in back taxes, something the IRS would never do for American citizens.

The Senate bill grants in-state college tuition (something that is denied to U.S. citizens in 49 other states), plus certain types of college financial assistance to illegal immigrants. As minorities, they may even get "affirmative action" preferences in jobs, government contracts, and college admissions. Even more outrageous, the Senate bill cedes American sovereignty by requiring the United States to consult with the Mexican government before building a border fence.

The so-called compromise proposed by Rep. Mike Pence would place no limit whatsoever on the numbers of foreign workers who could be imported by U.S. employers from any country anywhere in the world.

By flooding this country with so many immigrants — legal and illegal — controlling immigration will become impossible and by dumping that burden onto an already-overburdened system of government benefits, these proposals are a threat to the future of the United States. They must be defeated.

THEREFORE —

Passing no bill is better than passing any new amnesty, legalization, guest worker, or foreign worker program of any kind.

We call for enforcement now. We favor a policy of attrition of the illegal population through strong enforcement of our nation's immigration laws, which includes, first and foremost, the securing of our borders.

We call on both Houses of Congress to heed the American people and reject the Senate bill, the Pence bill, or any other bill that provides legalization of illegal aliens or substantial increases in legal immigration. We call on the House leadership to refuse to appoint members to a conference committee for the Senate bill.

If any such bill is enacted, including the Senate bill or the Pence bill, we pledge to withhold political support from any Member of Congress who votes for it.

Finally, we dedicate ourselves to defeating any 2008 presidential candidate who supports the Senate bill, the Pence bill, or any other bill that provides legalization of illegal aliens or substantial increases in legal immigration. We pledge to do so regardless of political party and in both the primaries and the general election.

Signed (affiliations for identification only):

Peggy Birchfield Religious Freedom Action Coalition Jim Boulet, Jr. English First Brent Bozell Conservative Victory Committee Bay Buchanan Team America PAC Mario A. Calabrese Christine Carmouche GrassTopsUSA Jim Clymer Constitution Party National Committee Kristen N. Cooper Foundation for American Christian Education Jerome R. Corsi, Ph.D. Author Kay Daly Tom DeWeese American Policy Center James R. Edwards Consultant to NumbersUSA Tom Fitton Judicial Watch Don Feder Don Feder Associates Kimberly Fletcher Homemakers for America, Inc. John Fonte Paul Goedinghaus Alamo Alliance William Green RightMarch.com Ellen Grigsby Open Doors USA Colin Hanna Let Freedom Ring, Inc. Carl F. Horowitz National Legal and Policy Center David Horowitz Center for the Study of Popular Culture Joan L. Hueter American Council for Immigration Reform Bishop Harry R. Jackson Hope Christian Ministries

Kevin Kearns U.S. Business and Industry Council Alan Keyes Declaration Alliance Mal Kline Accuracy in Academia Edward and Cynthia Kolb Desert Visions Gary G. Kreep United States Justice Foundation Mark Krikorian Center for Immigration Studies Deborah Lambert Accuracy in Media Rabbi Daniel Lapin Toward Tradition K.C. McAlpin ProEnglish William J. Murray Religious Freedom Coalition John O'Neill Swiftboat Veterans Howard Phillips The Conservative Caucus Alan Potter Constitution Party of Virginia Marc Rotterman Phyllis Schlafly Eagle Forum Rick and Caryann Shaftan Neighborhood Research/Mountaintop Media William H. Shaker RepublicanPac.com Rev. Lou Sheldon Traditional Values Coalition Jeff Schwilk San Diego Minutemen Chris Simcox Minuteman Civil Defense Corps Kent Snyder The Liberty Committee Mike Valerio Richard A. Viguerie Conservative HQ.com