Immigration Debates Heats Up Presidential Bids on Election 2008

Los Angeles-- The Coalition In Defense For Immigrant Rights (CDIR) –USA express optimism that issue of immigration will be acted upon and that the US

Congress will enact a humane and rationale immigration law that will benefits the 12 million or more immigrants in the United States.

The CDIR –USA Coordinator Arturo P.Garcia said the CDIR is happy in the fact that according to latest surveys more than 65% of Americans believe that a new immigration law should be enacted in Congress this year. The U.S. Senate failed last year to pass an immigration law.

Another 65% of Americans believe that immigration is an issue that should be discussed in presidential debates. In another CNN survey, more than 60% of

Americans do not believe that building a wall in the border will be productive and will prevent the flow of illegal immigrants from Mexico. Many believed that building the wall is just a waste of precious resources.

But anti-immigrant spokesman like CNN’s Lou Dobbs twist the survey that it is a people’s response against illegal immigration. The fact that the people

are interested in immigration debates for them is favorable for anti-immigrant sector when it is on the contrary is not.

Republican Senator John McCain and Senator Edward Kennedy have been on the receiving end of Lou Dobbs scathing criticism. They are calling the failed Kennedy-McCain Bill as an amnesty bill.

Other Republican candidates like Mitt Romney, Mike Huckebee; Fred Thompson has been unrelenting in their attacks against immigrants. The democrats have been quiet about this issue but are active on their support

for immigrant rights reform. Especially in California.

The CDIR will continue to bring the immigrant issue to the fore and will exert pressure for the U.S. Congress to act on a new immigration bill that is favorable for immigrants



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