{"id":6646,"date":"2014-05-15T10:04:55","date_gmt":"2014-05-15T14:04:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/live-immigrationreform.pantheonsite.io\/?p=6646"},"modified":"2018-12-28T15:01:09","modified_gmt":"2018-12-28T20:01:09","slug":"amnesty-in-the-ndaa-is-not-open-honest-or-fair","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.immigrationreform.com\/2014\/05\/15\/amnesty-in-the-ndaa-is-not-open-honest-or-fair\/","title":{"rendered":"Amnesty in the NDAA is Not Open, Honest, or Fair"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AmericanOn Monday, Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said<\/a> about changes to immigration law, “I do believe the vast majority of our members do want to deal with this, they want to deal with it openly, honestly and fairly.” That’s hardly how you could describe what is really going on.<\/p>\n

Openness, honesty, and fairness are the last three words that should be used to describe Representative Jeff Denham\u2019s (R-Calif.) effort to put amnesty in the NDAA.<\/p>\n

1. Open?<\/b>
\nRepresentative Denham is secretly meeting with House Democrats and lobbying<\/a> colleagues, with Majority Leader Eric Cantor\u2019s (R-Va.) blessing, in an effort to sneak amnesty into the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Such backroom negotiations<\/a> are a continuation of the practices of House GOP leaders, and resemble Senate tactics<\/a>, of meetings behind the scenes with special interests<\/p>\n

2. Honest?<\/b>
\nCongressman Denham has been spreading a lot of misinformation about what his proposal would actually do.\u00a0 Representative Denham claims<\/a> that his ENLIST Act (H.R. 2377) amendment to the NDAA \u201cwould apply solely to kids who were brought here through no fault of their own\u2026\u201d However, the ENLIST Act could be used to grant citizenship on the first day of basic training to a 35 year-old who purposely overstayed his visa in order to stay illegally in the United States. \u00a0That\u2019s not the only mischaracterization by Denham.\u00a0 Read more at FAIR\u2019s Sorting Through the Laundry List of ENLIST Act Claims<\/a>.<\/p>\n

3. Fair?<\/b>
\nBy seeking to put his ENLIST Act amendment to the NDAA, Representative Denham is holding a defense bill hostage for amnesty.\u00a0 He is hijacking a must-pass military funding bill by tacking on amnesty that he couldn\u2019t pass through normal channels. The other Members of Congress should have the opportunity to consider immigration policy in all its complexities and with adequate time, without rushing policy decisions under the pressures of evaluating an important piece of legislation critical to national security.<\/p>\n

If they truly want something open, honest, and fair, Members of Congress should recognize that\u2019s not in the military amnesty playbook of Representative Denham.