By: U.S. Congressman Phil Gingrey, M.D.

Imagine you are one of the thousands of immigrants who apply for American citizenship each year.  You follow the law, work hard, and pass your citizenship test.  After nearly five years of waiting, you are weeks away from the day you’ve dreamed about – the day you become an American citizen.

Now imagine you hear millions of illegal immigrants are going to jump ahead of you in line, and be granted citizenship without waiting or passing any tests.

Well, you can stop imagining, because this will be a reality if we don’t stop the Senate’s immigration proposal.

The Senate legislation is amnesty, plain and simple.  It allows illegal immigrants who have been in America for five years to get a green card and a path to citizenship. What does this say to all the law-abiding people patiently waiting to become American citizens?  It says they should have sneaked into our country and ignored our immigration laws like everyone else.

Unfortunately, amnesty for millions of illegal immigrants is just one the proposal’s numerous shortcomings.  The Senate bill also includes provisions to:

Ø      Establish foreign worker cards for illegal immigrants who have been in the U.S. between two and five years.

Ø      Allow illegal immigrants to prove residency in the U.S. with pay stubs or utility bills. Take a look at your most recent utility bill and see if it’s tamper-proof.  Can you imagine the massive document fraud that will take place?

Ø      Allow state colleges and universities to grant in-state tuition to illegal immigrants, subsidizing their education with our already-scarce education tax dollars.

Ø      Provide immigrant workers with full benefits including social security, further burdening our troubled system.

Ø      Give immigrant workers special privileges that even legal U.S. workers don’t enjoy.  Employers would have to pay immigrant workers a “prevailing wage” – no such requirement is made for American workers. Illegal workers would have special protections from being fired, a luxury U.S. workers aren’t afforded.

If this doesn’t have you outraged, I’ll keep going. Not only does the Senate legislation grant amnesty for illegal immigrants, it puts this mass citizenship above the important House-passed border security provisions.  In fact, the Senate bill requires consultation with the Mexican government before the construction of a border fence can begin – this is the same Mexican government providing its citizens with information about holes in our border.  Clearly, we can not allow these provisions to pass.

There is a better way to achieve meaningful immigration reform, and I am committed to passing the right kind of bill.  We can start by addressing three vital components:

(1)   Securing our border – first and foremost. How can we deal with illegal immigrants already in our nation if we can’t stop the flow of new immigrants across our border?  We need to increase border patrol personnel, complete a high-tech border fence, eliminate the catch-and-release policy, and allow state and local authorities to help in this crucial effort. 

(2)   Providing businesses with a fail-safe way to ensure the workers they hire are legal.  We can check the background of a gun purchaser in a matter of minutes. Giving businesses the same ability to quickly check their employees’ legal status will enable our industries to hire legal workers.

(3)   Above all, pledge our commitment to the rule of law. America is a land of laws, and we can not continue turning a blind eye toward the massive and systematic unlawfulness in our current immigration system.

The Senate plan accomplishes none of these goals, and I can not support their failing approach to reform.

We have a serious problem with illegal immigration in this country, and we must address this dire situation quickly and appropriately. As a physician, I like to compare this problem to a bleeding patient. You have to stop the bleeding before you can begin healing the patient. Likewise, we must stop the hemorrhaging of our borders before we can address other areas of reform. 

You can’t cure cancer with a band-aid, and you can’t fix our immigration problem with a simple plan for amnesty.  We need true, systemic reform that secures our borders, upholds our laws, and stops the flow of illegal immigrants.  Anything less is simply unacceptable – and that includes the Senate’s proposal.

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ACU Names Congressman Gingrey one of the “Best and Brightest” Members of Congress

This month, the American Conservative Union honored Congressman Gingrey with its Best and Brightest Award, given annually to Senators and Congressmen who demonstrate their commitment to conservative principles.

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Gingrey praises the elimination of al Qaida’s top leader in Iraq

In June, U.S. military forces killed al Qaida’s top leader in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarawi.  Phil praised this critical development in our fight for freedom in Iraq.

“This is a tremendous victory in our war on terrorism, and a tremendous day for the Iraqi people,” said Phil.  “In fact, the air strike resulted from tips given to Iraqi security forces by residents in Diyala.   Al-Zarqawi was responsible for an untold number of bombings and kidnappings – he is even believed to have personally beheaded two American hostages.  His death lets our enemies know that we will not bow to their ruthless tactics. America, our allies, and the Iraqi people are committed to the triumph of liberty over terrorism.”

Phil also praised our brave servicemen and women for their outstanding job protecting our nation from those who wish us harm.

This month, Phil launched “Phil’s Blog,” a web log (blog) to keep his constituents up-to-date on the latest news, commentary, and stories from Washington and the 11^th District. 

The blog is updated daily, so check back often for stories of inspiration and outrage, the latest happenings in Congress, and news on community members who are making a difference.  Readers can also leave comments for Phil.

“I am constantly looking for new ways to stay in contact with my constituents,” said Phil.  “My blog lets me communicate with people directly and informally.”

To view Phil’s Blog, visit: http://gingrey.house.gov/blog/ or click on the yellow “Phil’s Blog” tab from Gingrey’s website homepage: http://gingrey.house.gov.

Phil has been receiving a steady flow of bricks from people in the 11th District who support strengthening our border.  The bricks are accompanied by notes explaining, “I am sending you this brick in support of an increase in the border security of the United States.  This brick should give you a start in building a wall on the border…” 

Phil praised the effort, saying, “This is an effective campaign, and a symbolic reminder of the urgent situation on our border.  I remain deeply committed to securing our border – first and foremost.”

Phil has voted twice to complete the border fence: in the REAL ID Act passed by Congress in 2005 and in the Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act passed by the House last December.

Please click here for a photograph of the symbolic mini-wall he constructed with these bricks.

In June, Phil voted to pass two pieces of legislation supporting the vital work that takes place at the Lockheed Martin plant in Marietta.

Earlier this month, the House passed emergency funding for critical defense and border security priorities.  The legislation included funding for three C-130J aircraft and two KC-130J aircraft, both manufactured in Marietta. Phil was a leading advocate of the KC-130J funding, which was not included in the President’s original request.  President Bush has signed this legislation into law.

Later in June, the House passed the Defense Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2007.  In this legislation, Phil helped secure full funding for the F-22 program ($2.9 billion for 20 new aircraft) and full funding for the C-130J program (more than $697 million for nine new aircraft).  The legislation also included more than $156 million to modernize the existing fleet of C-5 aircraft at the Marietta plant.

“These are win-win bills,” said Phil.  “They fund our defense priorities and support the good work going on right here in Georgia.  The F-22 is the most technologically advanced plane in the world, and the C-130J and C-5 aircraft are the workhorses of our military.  By funding these programs, we are showing our commitment to maintaining air dominance and continuing our fighting against both terrorist and conventional threats.  I’m proud the 11th District is home to workers and companies helping to safeguard our nation.”

Earlier this month, Phil introduced legislation supporting pluripotent stem cell research, a type of research that does not harm human embryos.  Pluripotent stem cells closely resemble embryonic stem cells, but can not develop into a human embryo. As a pro-life OB-GYN, Phil has pledged not to support research that sacrifices human life.

“The beauty of stem cell research is that it holds the potential to find treatments that can save lives,” Phil commented. “But the power of this research is discredited if we say it’s okay to destroy life in the process. This new bill represents a promising way we can conduct stem cell research without sacrificing life for medicine.”

Gingrey pledges support for our troops and the War on Terror