Wes Hickman (202) 224-5972 or Kevin Bishop (864) 250-1417
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) today met with President Bush at the White House to discuss immigration reform. Graham was part of a bipartisan delegation of Senators.
Graham said:
“After our meeting, I deeply believe President Bush would like immigration reform to be part of his legacy. As a former border state governor, President Bush is well-versed on the nature of the problem and the need to address it in a comprehensive manner. He also understands the basic fact that it is impractical to deport and physically remove all 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States.
“During our meeting, President Bush reaffirmed his position that allowing illegal immigrants to jump in front of someone pursuing legal status would be wrong. I agree with the President and the bipartisan compromise bill we negotiated in the Senate does not allow illegal immigrants to jump to the front of the line.
“Immigration reform is one of the most complex and important matters facing our nation. With presidential leadership on this difficult issue, I think we can pass comprehensive immigration reform into law.
“I’m convinced the President will do everything in his power to pass immigration reform that secures our border, reforms our employment laws, and fairly deals with the 11 million people here illegally.
“I hope the Senate will again take up this most important issue in the near future.”
#####