WASHINGTON (By Daniel Gonzαlez, Arizona
Republic) April 15, 2005 - A majority of Americans believe the nation's
immigration system needs fixing and favor giving work visas to foreigners
and undocumented immigrants provided there are stiffer penalties for people
and employers who violate immigration laws, according to a new poll.
The poll, by two immigrant-advocacy organizations, indicated that 80 percent of Americans favor requiring undocumented workers to register as temporary guest workers and 65 percent favor giving work visas to foreigners and seasonal workers. Sixty-two percent of Americans also support allowing undocumented immigrants already in the United States to earn citizenship provided they are working, paying taxes and learning English.
"The ground is fertile. The American public is very aware of our broken immigration system and is in a positive mind for immigration reform," said Angela Kelley, deputy director of the National Immigration Forum. The immigrant-advocacy organization in Washington, D.C., commissioned the poll along with the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
The poll of 800 registered and "likely" voters is surprising because it contradicts a growing national movement to clamp down on undocumented immigrants galvanized by Arizona's passage of Proposition 200 in November. The measure is intended to make sure undocumented immigrants don't vote or have access to state-funded public benefits.
Instead, the poll indicates Americans favor immigration reforms even more lenient than the temporary-worker program supported by President Bush, said U.S. Rep. Jim Kolbe, R-Ariz., a leading supporter in Congress of a temporary-worker program.
While Bush favors giving work visas to undocumented immigrants already in the United States, the president opposes allowing them to earn citizenship.
"It appears from the poll that people do favor a path for permanent residency and citizenship that goes beyond what the president has said," Kolbe said.
Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain and Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy are working on a bipartisan immigration-reform bill based on principles outlined by Bush. They are expected to introduce their bill within the next few weeks.
Meanwhile, the Washington, D.C.-based Federation for American Immigration Reform, or FAIR, dismissed the latest poll as a "sham."
"If (immigration reform) is so popular, why did the president stop talking about it right before the election?" asked Ira Mehlman, a spokesman for FAIR, which favors tighter reductions on immigration.
The poll did not ask questions about cracking down on employers who hire undocumented workers and limiting undocumented immigrants' access to public benefits, which most Americans support over granting work visas and allowing undocumented immigrants to earn citizenship, Mehlman said.
"They favor some sort of rational enforcement policies with the main component being discouraging (undocumented immigrants) from coming in the first place and encouraging those who are here to go home," Mehlman said.
The poll was conducted by Celinda Lake of Lake Snell Perry Mermin & Associates, a Democratic polling firm, and Ed Goeas of the Tarrance Group, a Republican polling firm, from March 20 to 22. It had a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points.
The poll, by two immigrant-advocacy organizations, indicated that 80 percent of Americans favor requiring undocumented workers to register as temporary guest workers and 65 percent favor giving work visas to foreigners and seasonal workers. Sixty-two percent of Americans also support allowing undocumented immigrants already in the United States to earn citizenship provided they are working, paying taxes and learning English.
"The ground is fertile. The American public is very aware of our broken immigration system and is in a positive mind for immigration reform," said Angela Kelley, deputy director of the National Immigration Forum. The immigrant-advocacy organization in Washington, D.C., commissioned the poll along with the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
The poll of 800 registered and "likely" voters is surprising because it contradicts a growing national movement to clamp down on undocumented immigrants galvanized by Arizona's passage of Proposition 200 in November. The measure is intended to make sure undocumented immigrants don't vote or have access to state-funded public benefits.
Instead, the poll indicates Americans favor immigration reforms even more lenient than the temporary-worker program supported by President Bush, said U.S. Rep. Jim Kolbe, R-Ariz., a leading supporter in Congress of a temporary-worker program.
While Bush favors giving work visas to undocumented immigrants already in the United States, the president opposes allowing them to earn citizenship.
"It appears from the poll that people do favor a path for permanent residency and citizenship that goes beyond what the president has said," Kolbe said.
Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain and Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy are working on a bipartisan immigration-reform bill based on principles outlined by Bush. They are expected to introduce their bill within the next few weeks.
Meanwhile, the Washington, D.C.-based Federation for American Immigration Reform, or FAIR, dismissed the latest poll as a "sham."
"If (immigration reform) is so popular, why did the president stop talking about it right before the election?" asked Ira Mehlman, a spokesman for FAIR, which favors tighter reductions on immigration.
The poll did not ask questions about cracking down on employers who hire undocumented workers and limiting undocumented immigrants' access to public benefits, which most Americans support over granting work visas and allowing undocumented immigrants to earn citizenship, Mehlman said.
"They favor some sort of rational enforcement policies with the main component being discouraging (undocumented immigrants) from coming in the first place and encouraging those who are here to go home," Mehlman said.
The poll was conducted by Celinda Lake of Lake Snell Perry Mermin & Associates, a Democratic polling firm, and Ed Goeas of the Tarrance Group, a Republican polling firm, from March 20 to 22. It had a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points.
