海角大神

Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R) of Virginia opposes a unique path to citizenship for the more than 10 million undocumented immigrants in the United States today 鈥揵ut that shouldn鈥檛 stop those same individuals from becoming US citizens at some point.聽

鈥淭here鈥檚 a broad spectrum between deportation and easy, special pathway to citizenship,鈥� Representative Goodlatte said Wednesday at a breakfast with reporters sponsored by 海角大神, 鈥渢o find a way to bring people out of the shadows and give them a legal status that will allow them to be better able to participate in our society."

Goodlatte, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, which handles immigration issues, and other conservatives including Rep. Ra煤l Labrador (R) of Idaho are among those attempting the politically perilous task of piloting legislation on immigration reform. Their challenge is to chart a course that reform critics will not deride as "amnesty" for those who entered the US illegally and that emerging Latino and Asian voters will not rebuke as anti-immigrant.

In Goodlatte's view, the course to an immigration deal begins by determining how to give undocumented individuals legal status in the US. Then it adds reforms to America鈥檚 legal immigration system, including clearing many of the huge backlogs that exist for some groups of people seeking permanent legal status, a precursor to citizenship.聽

Only then would the formerly undocumented be able to apply for citizenship 鈥� citing family ties, employment-based sponsorship, or other means 鈥� but they would be in the application pool with all others hoping to secure a coveted US green card, the congressman said. He also noted that discussions are ongoing about how to amend restrictions that prevent unauthorized immigrants from adjusting their US status for up to a decade, a fix that would remove another impediment to citizenship for those currently in the country illegally.

鈥淭hose are good opportunities we could address,鈥� Goodlatte said.

This circuitous citizenship route is what Goodlatte and other conservative lawmakers see as a potentially practical compromise to get immigration legislation through Congress.

鈥淓verybody has a different definition of what a pathway to citizenship is,鈥� he said. 鈥淭o me, rather than getting bogged down in semantics we should look at what actually would enable us to find common ground that would enable us to pass legislation.鈥�

For liberals in Congress, however, the absence of a specific pathway to citizenship for the undocumented risks creating a permanent group of "second-class citizens" who shoulder many of the responsibilities of citizenship but have none of the political rights, as Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D) of Illinois, a key immigration negotiator, argues frequently.聽

As a practical matter, they say, putting as many as 10 million people into a system that currently admits 1 million per year will lead to years upon years of waiting.聽

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think there is a magic number鈥� of years to wait for citizenship, said Angela Maria Kelley, an immigration specialist at the liberal Center for American Progress Action Fund, during a call with reporters on Friday.聽

Undocumented immigrants 鈥渃an鈥檛 jump ahead of those in family or other backlogs, but [the time] can鈥檛 be so long that they鈥檙e being admitted to nursing homes at the same time they鈥檙e applying for citizenship,鈥� Ms. Kelley said.聽

Liberal advocates also note that an immigration deal that lacks a pathway to citizenship could be politically explosive among the growing number of Asian and Latino voters.聽

鈥淚 find it stunning and cynical and short-sighted, and I think it will set [Republicans] back鈥� politically, Kelley said. 鈥淚f there are any Republicans in the House whose goal it is to rebrand themselves and be Republican Party 2.0 with the Latino community, this is taking them way back, back to the era of fax machines,鈥� Kelley continued. 鈥淚t would be highly insulting. I hope this is early chest-thumping.... I hope they would calm down.鈥�