Tough, Tougher... no TOUGHEST yet? I am disappointed.


And Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean is also correct when he said last week that “the first thing we want is tough border control.” - Newt Gingrich, National Review Online.

"It would have worked if they had enforced it," says Rep. Dan Lungren, R-Calif., who played a leading role in the 1986 debate and in passage of a much tougher measure in the House in December. [...] Even if the Senate passes a bill, it would have to reconcile its version with the bill passed in the House in December, which takes a far tougher approach. [...] But he and others involved in the debate then, including Specter, said another piece of the earlier plan, tough employer sanctions, never fully materialized. [...] Last December, Sensenbrenner led the House effort to pass tougher legislation. - BY CHRIS MONDICS, Knight Ridder Newspapers.

From the desk of Teddy Kennedy

Our plan is even tougher and more effective than the others on the table because not only does it include these strong enforcement provisions but it will also break the cycle of illegality."

Some people have tried to frame the debate between the Judiciary Committee bill and Senator Frist's bill as a debate between those who would be tough on enforcement and those who would not.

The differences between these two bills, and the issues at stake in amendments being considered, concern what we do in addition to these tough new enforcement provisions.

Our bill is not only tough on immigration enforcement; it also takes necessary steps to repair the broken immigration system so that enforcement can be effective.

The Frist bill is tough on enforcement. Our bill is tough and smart.

So let's have an honest debate: do we want comprehensive reform which combines tough enforcement, earned legalization, and a sensible temporary worker program. Or do we want enforcement only?