2007年VOA标准英语-Bush Administration Urges Congress to Act on Im

By Deborah Tate
Capitol Hill
28 February 2007

The Bush administration is stepping up its campaign to get the Democratic-led Congress to approve its immigration reform plan, which failed to get approval from the Republican-dominated Congress last year.  Two top officials made appeals to a Senate panel Wednesday, as VOA's Deborah Tate reports from Capitol Hill.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington before the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on immigration reform

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee to make the Bush administration's case for immigration reform.

The centerpiece of the administration's plan is guest worker program, which could give most of the nation's estimated 11 million to 12 million illegal immigrants a path to U.S. citizenship².

Many congressional Republicans are opposed to a guest worker program, arguing it represents amnesty.  It is a key reason why the Republican majority in the last Congress did not support the president's plan.

Senator Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican who supports the plan, called on Chertoff and Gutierrez to do more to convince members of their party that it is not amnesty.

"I would appreciate it if both of you would think through this amnesty issue and find the best arguments we have for what else can be done to eliminate this argument, because it is an impediment in dealing³ with the 11 million undocumented emigrants," said Mr. Specter.

In arguing why the plan is not amnesty, Chertoff and Gutierrez underscored that guest workers would have to meet a series of conditions before getting on a path to citizenship, including paying fines and learning English.

Most Democrats⁴, who are now in the majority in Congress, back the idea of a guest worker program, giving hope to the Bush administration that prospects⁵ for immigration reform have improved.

Senator Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat¹, is chairman of the Judiciary Committee:

"Reform is overdue," he said.  "We must be realistic about the millions of undocumented people in this country.  We need to bring people out of the shadows."

Commerce Secretary Gutierrez said the guest worker program is essential to keep the U.S. economy growing:

"We recognize that immigration has been a crucial part of our economic growth," he noted⁶. "Immigrants make up 15 percent of our labor⁷ force, and account for about half of labor force growth since 1996.  Even so, the reality is that there are thousands of jobs that are not getting filled by Americans."

Homeland Security Secretary Chertoff argued that a guest worker program, along with border security and employer enforcement, is in the national security interest.

"Having a regulated channel for this kind of labor force is actually going to help our border enforcement, because it is going to reduce the pressure on the border that is caused by the huge economic demand that is drawing the tens of thousands of migrants to cross the desert or cross the Rio Grande River to work in the United States," he said.  "Bringing these people into a regulated, visible system will help our ability to promote national security."

Still, many Republicans favor a staggered approach to immigration reform, saying they want to be assured that borders are secure before a guest worker program is established.

"We have to re-establish confidence [in border security] before we address the issue of the 11 million people that are here," said Senator Tom Coburn an Oklahoma Republican.

Secretary Chertoff sought to address such concerns, saying there has been a dramatic drop in the number of illegal border crossings since President Bush ordered thousands of National Guard troops to patrol the U.S. border with Mexico back in May.

"In the three-quarters of the year since we put into effect Operation Jump Start, we have seen in each quarter a significant decline in the number of people we are seeing crossing the border," he added.

Chertoff also highlighted success in cracking down on employers who have hired illegal workers.

1 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

2 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

3 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

4 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

6 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

7 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。