GOP deeds under a microscope: by failing to oppose the dangerous policies of the Bush administration, much of the GOP leadership has proven that their talk about border security is nothing but rhetoric.(THE GOP)(Grand Old Party (US Republican political party) )

Since the inception of the Bush administration's post-9/11 "War on Terrorism," both the White House and congressional Republicans have paid generous lip service to the need to improve border security, an important part of controlling terrorism. "The United States must secure its borders," President Bush stated on May 15 of this year when he addressed the nation from the Oval Office on the subject of immigration. "This is a basic responsibility of a sovereign nation. It is also an urgent requirement of our national security."

However, in the same address, the president also stated that, "to secure our border, we must create a temporary worker program," that this program "would create a legal path for foreign workers to enter our country in an orderly way," and that it "would match willing foreign workers with willing American employers." This program--which would provide legal status to millions of illegal immigrants already here and open the floodgates for many millions more to come--does not make sense if the purpose is to secure our borders. But it does make sense in light of the administration's Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) with the governments of Mexico and Canada that would effectively erase the national borders within North America on the path to forming the North American Union patterned after the European Union.

In moving forward with the SPP/NAU, the president has the support of the GOP leadership. This was evident at the congressional hearing, "Immigration: Responding to a Regional Crisis," chaired by Congressman Dan Burton (R-Ind.), chairman of the House International Relations' Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere. The meeting made clear that the United States is aiming to merge functions with Canada and Mexico and is pushing to allow the citizens from Mexico, Canada, and the United States to cross borders at will. In a statement issued in preparation for the hearing, Burton stated: "We have already begun the process of working with our friends by launching the Partnership for Prosperity (P4P) and the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP), but more needs to be done to stem the tide of illegal aliens into the United States in the short-term, as well as to pave the way towards a long-term, coordinated and legal immigration plan for our Hem# sphere." (Emphasis added.)

Despite the implication in this statement that the administration plans to stop illegal immigration and then only allow limited legal immigration, the reality is that the administration plans to legalize all current illegal immigrants--and facilitate the legal migration of any willing persons across the three countries' borders. Consider what the Senate's "comprehensive immigration bill" (S. 2611) supported by the Bush administration says.

S. 2611 represents a classic "bait-and-switch," insofar as providing a vehicle to curb illegal immigration is concerned. The earlier sections of the legislation appear to mandate a crackdown on illegal immigration, by employing subheads such as "Border Enforcement," "National Strategy for Border Security," "Document Fraud Detection," etc. These sections are followed by what we might term the "loophole" provisions. Most of these fall under the heading of Title IV--Nonimmigrant and Immigrant Visa Reform (which establishes a "Temporary Worker Task Force") and Title VI--Work Authorization and Legalization of Undocumented Individuals.

The latter section contains language mandating that the secretary of Homeland Security "adjust" the status of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence. Lawfully? This is evidently Orwellian Newspeak, since some of the requirements for an alien to have his status "adjusted" include provisions that allow the legalization of most every illegal immigrant: the alien "was physically present ...