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Bush pushes for guest worker program

Posted on: Saturday, 22 October 2005, 09:46 CDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush said on Saturday that his proposed guest worker program was an essential component of a plan to stem the flow of illegal immigration into the United States.

Bush this week signed a Homeland Security Department spending bill that included funds to toughen border security and increase enforcement of immigration laws.

"As we improve and expand our efforts to secure our borders, we must also recognize that enforcement cannot work unless it's part of a comprehensive immigration reform that includes a temporary worker program," Bush said in his weekly radio address.

"If an employer has a job that no American is willing to take, we need to find a way to fill that demand by matching willing employers with willing workers from foreign countries on a temporary and legal basis," he said.

Bush said he would work with Congress to create a program that would address U.S. labor needs without granting amnesty to illegal immigrants.

Bush's proposal has raised concerns among some of his fellow Republicans in Congress who worry that the plan would reward undocumented workers already in the country by allowing them to qualify for the program.

Immigration has also been a sore spot in U.S.-Mexican relations. Easing U.S. immigration restrictions for Mexican workers has been a top priority for Mexican President Vicente Fox since he took office in 2000.

Source: REUTERS

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