Noted Quotes: Coburn, Inhofe Laud 'Flawed' Immigration Bill Failure, Seek 'Secure Borders'

From U. S. Senator Tom Coburn: “The failure of this amnesty bill is a victory for fairness, and the rule of law. Though there were good provisions in the bill, such as a merit-based immigration system, the overall bill would have been harmful to our nation and would have done nothing to solve our problems with illegal immigration. It is my hope the Senate will work together to produce a bill that protects our nation by first securing our borders and enforcing our laws.”

From U. S. Senator Jim Inhofe: “This legislation was substantively and procedurally flawed from the beginning. The bill did not undergo the normal legislative process, but instead we were expected to vote on a bill that members did not have a chance to review until two days before floor consideration. The Democratic leadership also refused to allow consideration of dozens of Republican amendments. Though my amendment to make English the national language was successful and passed the Senate by a wide bi-partisan majority, many amendments that could have positively impacted the overall bill were never allowed floor-time. The first step in any significant immigration legislation must be to secure our borders. The Senate bill focused far too much on controversial and irresponsible programs such as the ‘Z-visa,’ and far too little on ensuring that our borders are no longer porous. It is time that we deal with real immigration reform beginning with border security. Thankfully, Americans of all stripes weighed in on this issue, influencing Congressional opinions and helping defeat this bill. It is clear that in the future we must deal with the issue of illegal immigration without a path to amnesty and by securing our borders.”

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