s for immigration

[00:03.92]reform they say will be fairer than what President Bush has proposed.

[00:08.57]The announcement sets up an election year battle

[00:10.84]between Democrats and Republicans over immigration.

[00:13.54]The president's immigration proposal, which he outlined in early January,

[00:17.75]would give legal status to millions of un-documented immigrants,

[00:21.31]and create a temporary program to match foreign workers with jobs

[00:24.91]Americans are not willing to take.

[00:24.91]Mr. Bush used his State of the Union address to underscore

[00:28.30]the advantages he sees in the plan.

[00:30.49]"This reform will be good for our economy because employers will

[00:35.28]find needed workers in an honest and orderly system," he said.

[00:39.17]"A temporary worker program will help protect our homeland allowing border

[00:45.14]patrol and law enforcement to focus on true threats to our national security."

[00:49.86]While the proposal has received a warm reception in some quarters,

[00:53.75]notably among immigrant workers from Mexico and Central America,

[00:57.56]it has also been criticized by Hispanic-Americans

[01:00.34]including key Hispanic leaders in Congress.

[01:03.14]"Simply acknowledging the need for our sweat,

[01:12.36]our toil and hard work is not enough.

[01:15.42]Simply recognizing our vital role in the workforce,

[01:19.38]to the bottom line of companies like Walmart, is not enough,"

[01:23.66]"I suggest you all get used to these words because

[01:27.55]we will repeat them again and again,

[01:29.64]to the president and to all members of Congress. We cannot have our work,

[01:29.72]you cannot have our work,

[01:32.20]if you don't give us our basic rights to go along with that work.

[01:36.38]Simply creating a permanent underclass for immigrants is not only unfair and unjust,

[01:43.51]it is unacceptable to the needs of our nation and unworthy of

[01:47.43]our nation's history and its heritage."

[01:50.31]Mr. Gutierrez joined House Democratic leaders to announce what they call

[01:54.38]"comprehensive immigration reform principles."

[01:57.19]He said President Bush deserves credit for tackling the issue of

[02:00.35]a "badly broken" immigration system,

[02:02.95]but adds that the Bush proposal fails to provide

[02:05.65]a "fair and clear path to permanency and citizenship."

[02:09.46]And in an indirect reference to charges that political

[02:12.20]motivations in this election year underly the president's proposal,

[02:15.80]Mr. Gutierrez went on to say,

[02:17.38]"What is tough about seeking real reform is that you cannot compromise,

[02:22.89]and we will not compromise,

[02:24.62]our core principles because it might be politically expedient."

[02:30.70]" said Robert Menendez,

[02:31.71]the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus.

[02:34.01]"But by the same token,

[02:50.00]the reality is that for those immigrants who are hunched over every day

[02:57.31]making sure we [can] put fruits and vegetables on our table,

[03:02.38]for those who are plucking chicken in Arkansas,

[03:05.55]for those who are on their knees scrubbing bathrooms in hotel rooms

[03:10.66]and in people's private homes across the landscape of America,

[03:15.45]we are collectively receiving the benefit of millions of people

[03:19.63]who are doing the work that we cannot get Americans to do."

[03:22.94]Whatever immigration reform emerges, Congress will have to approve a new law.

[03:27.44]Groups representing Hispanic Americans

[03:29.78]want to be sure it includes labor and legal rights to prevent abuse of workers.

[03:34.39]"We need a new temporary worker program that provides

[03:41.36]legal channels for people to come here,

[03:44.28]but that also has adequate labor protections to protect both American

[03:49.46]workers and immigrant workers

[03:48.46]and we need to provide a path to permanent residency

[03:51.13]and citizenship for those workers

[03:53.11]who decide to make the U.S. their permanent home,"

[03:56.09]Estimates of the number of illegal immigrants currently

[03:59.30]in the United States range as high as ten million.

[04:01.64]Immigration, along with national security and the economy,

[04:04.77]has been a key issue among Democratic candidates for president this year,

[04:08.26]and is likely to be just as significant in the contest between

[04:11.43]President Bush and a future Democratic nominee for the White House.