posted 03-20-2002 10:12 AM            

Byrd to delay Senate vote

Sen. Robert C. Byrd, West Virginia Democrat, yesterday said he will delay passage of border-security legislation because it now contains a provision of amnesty for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants.
"It is lunacy — sheer lunacy — that the president would request, and the House would pass, such an amnesty at this time. That point seems obvious to the American people, if not to the administration," Mr. Byrd said on the Senate floor.

Mr. Byrd held up action in December on the legislation to increase border security, a measure taken in response to the September 11 attacks. The administration and House leaders had hoped attaching the amnesty provision would push the Democrat-controlled Senate to act, but instead it just fed Mr. Byrd's demand for a full debate on the bill.
The border-security provisions would reduce the number of visas issued to visitors from countries that sponsor terrorism, tighten the requirements on those entering on student visas and require federal agencies to share information through a common computer system so they can better track immigrants' movements. Three of the 19 air pirates in the attacks had overstayed their visas.
House members have voted twice to pass the border-security provisions, and Greg Crist, a spokesman for Mr. Armey, said it is time for the Senate to act.
"We're not sure why the senator would oppose something that builds on the existing network of security since [September 11]," Mr. Crist said. "It boggles our minds in the House, and we'll keep trying."
The bill provides a temporary extension to a program — known as Section 245(i) — that allows some illegal aliens to stay in the United States while their residency applications are processed. The program, requiring each foreigner to pay a $1,000 penalty to remain in the country, expired in April.
The House approved an extension in May by a vote of 336-43. The Senate approved its own version on Sept. 6 and sent it back to the House. The House vote was closer this time around because of a strong effort from immigration reform groups who said amnesty would reward lawbreakers and encourage more illegal immigration by holding out the promise of future amnesties.
Mr. Byrd said last week's revelation that student visas were approved and sent to two of the suspected September 11 terrorist hijackers showed how poorly equipped the INS was to handle its current caseload, much less new cases under the amnesty provision.
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