Immigration Reform Advocates Will Turn Up Heat in DC This April
by Chad Groening
February 8, 2005
(AgapePress) - The former mayor of San Diego, California, and the Federation for American Immigration Reform (F.A.I.R.) are hoping to bring activists from all over the U.S. to Washington this spring in an effort to push Congress to pass important legislation that will protect American citizens from the illegal alien invasion.The event called "Hold Their Feet to the Fire" will take place April 23 - 28 in the nation's capital. F.A.I.R. will be working with former Mayor Roger Hedgecock, who now hosts a talk show in San Diego. The immigration reform group's spokesman, Rick Oltman, says his group wants to turn up the pressure and hold Congress accountable to the American people on the issue of immigration reform -- that is, to hold the lawmakers' collective "feet to the fire."
"We want as many activists as possible to come to Washington to lobby Congress to pass the immigration reform that needs to be passed to protect this country," Oltman says. Part of that, he points out, is the legislation that was cut out of the 9/11 bills that Congressman James Sensenbrenner has brought back this year.
"We want to be lobbying the Senate to be sure that they pass the driver's license reform and the other reforms that Sensenbrunner had included in his bill last year," the immigration reform advocate says. However, he notes that his group is less confident about what will happen in the U.S. Senate, where he believes there is likely to be some resistance.
"We know that the problem will be in the Senate," Oltman says. "We had two competing bills last year; the House version of the bills was called the 9/11 Recommendations Implementation Act. That was to implement the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to close up the loopholes that the terrorists took advantage of when they murdered Americans on 9/11."
The F.A.I.R. spokesman feels the name of the corresponding legislation in the U.S. Senate is revealing of that legislative body's priorities. "The Senate version of the bill was called the Intel Reform Act of 2004," he says, "so clearly the Senate had other interests."
Nevertheless, Oltman says F.A.I.R. intends to work with Hedgecock to get the word out, so activists from all over America will descend on Washington and strongly urge the nation's lawmakers to pass much-needed immigration reform legislation.
Chad Groening, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.
