$600M border bill unlikely to spur immigration reform

[The Northerner]

By Liz Goodwin

President Obama signed a $600 million border-security bill into law today, which will send 1,000 new patrol agents to the border and pay for unmanned drones and other surveillance technology.

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said the bill shows both Democrats and Republicans are serious about securing the border, and thus clears the way for comprehensive immigration reform that would include a way for illegal immigrants already in the United States to get legal status. "Now our attention must turn to comprehensive reform, which is the only way to fully address the problem of illegal immigration," he said, according to CNN.

Republicans have refused to discuss Schumer's draft proposal for reform so far this year, admitting the immigration system is "broken" but insisting Congress should not touch the issue until the border is secure. Popular support for Arizona's immigration law suggests the American public is also focused on stricter enforcement of immigration laws, instead of reform.

So is this bill - -along with the 1,200 National Guard Obama sent to the border at the beginning of the month -- enough to convince reform holdouts that the border is secure enough to talk reform?

Not likely. Sen. John McCain, for one, has asked for $2 billion and 6,000 additional border patrol agents, a far cry from what got passed. Though he added himself as a co-sponsor to the bill, he said the measure is "just a start." Sen. Chuck Grassley also called for more security measures, The Washington Independent points out.

And advocates for immigration reform tell Politico Democrats have now lost a bargaining chip, since the reform bill calls for enhanced enforcement, such as a national I.D. card to verify employment eligibility, and more border security resources. Sen. Jon Kyl claimed in June that President Obama was holding border security "hostage" so Republicans would have to sign on to reform in order to get increased enforcement. If such a nefarious plot ever existed (The White House denied it), this bill means it certainly doesn't now.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20100813/pl_yblog_upshot/600m-border-bill-unlikely-to-spur-immigration-reform