WASHINGTON (By Warren Vieth, LATimes)
November 21, 2005 —
The Bush administration's increasingly tough talk on illegal immigration
is scaring some business allies and trade groups whose support the White
House is seeking for a broad overhaul of immigration laws.Uncertainty about President Bush's intentions has caused start-up problems for a business coalition created at the White House's request to help finance a publicity and advertising campaign to promote changes to immigration laws.
The anxiety level could rise further when Bush and other administration officials step up their rhetorical campaign after Thanksgiving and in December, which some officials are calling "border security month."
When Bush first outlined his immigration proposals in early 2004, he called for creation of a guest-worker program that would grant temporary work visas to undocumented immigrants already here and to prospective workers abroad, a top objective of businesses that rely heavily on immigrant labor. The president also called for a renewed crackdown on security at the border, a priority of "immigration hawks' " who form a large part of the Republican base.
But recently, a perceived shift of emphasis by the president toward border security has left many businesses worried about the depth of his commitment to a guest-worker plan, which they consider an essential element of any reform legislation.
"Businesses have put a line in the sand, if you will," said Laura Reiff, an immigration attorney who co-chairs a coalition organized by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. "We want to make it clear we don't think enforcement-only is the way to go. It has to be comprehensive."
Fund-raising problems
The president's shift in emphasis has caused problems for Americans for Border and Economic Security, a group organized during the summer on behalf of the White House to raise funds to promote the president's vision of immigration reform.The group started out with a fund-raising goal of $3 million and tried to entice companies and trade groups to sign up for memberships priced at $50,000 to $250,000. It got few takers and has since reduced the price of admission to a minimum of $25,000 and maximum of $75,000, according to people who have been approached by the group.
The key figures in Americans for Border and Economic Security are former GOP Chairman Ed Gillespie, former Rep. Cal Dooley, D-Calif., and former House Republican Leader Dick Armey of Texas. Initial organizing sessions, held in the Washington, D.C., offices of Gillespie's lobbying firm, Quinn Gillespie & Associates, were attended by representatives of Wal-Mart, Microsoft, Tyson Foods, the American Hospital Association and the U.S. chamber, among others.
A spokeswoman for Microsoft would not say whether the company had joined ABES. Representatives of the other companies and organizations said they either declined the invitation or had not yet made up their minds.
Several other businesses and groups contacted in recent days, including the American Farm Bureau, American Health Care Association and American Nursery & Landscape Association, said they had chosen not to participate.
Most of those contacted said they were reluctant to join Gillespie's group because it was not clear how hard the president would push for comprehensive reform, and how soon the House and Senate would enact broad legislation. A few said they were also deterred by the high cost of membership or were participating in the Essential Worker Immigration Coalition, the advocacy group organized by the U.S. chamber.
Unknown program
Another worry for businesses has been the lack of clarity over what type of guest-worker program the White House will ultimately endorse.In recent congressional testimony, Labor Secretary Elaine Chao said Bush favored a guest-worker program that would require workers to go back to their countries of origin after six years.
That idea is more stringent than business-backed proposals that would let undocumented workers remain in America and apply for citizenship after paying fines for having broken the law by having entered the country illegally.
With an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants comprising roughly 5 percent of the U.S. workforce, many businesses believe that attempting to make them move back to their home countries would disrupt the U.S. economy, devastate some agricultural sectors and labor-intensive industries, drain government resources and require one of the biggest mass migrations in history.
"If you don't provide some kind of accommodation, these 11 million people are not going to come out of the shadows but are going to remain underground," said Dooley, who heads the Food Products Association.
"The United States is now their home, by and large. The overwhelming majority are gainfully employed, have families here and are making positive contributions to our economy. It would not be in this country's interest to force them to leave."
