White House defends immigration reform deal
Law & Politics
[##_1L|1335739669.jpg|width="180" height="135" alt=""|_##]The White House over the weekend defended an immigration reform agreement reached Thursday with key Republican and Democratic senators which has drawn opposition from both aisles of Congress, threatening what President Bush called a "secure, productive, orderly, and fair" proposal. The deal has been derided by some Republicans as amounting to "amnesty" for up to 12 million undocumented immigrants currently in the United States. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez told CNN Sunday that for those critics "the only thing that would not be amnesty is mass deportation." DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff meanwhile challenged critics to offer alternative solutions instead of simply saying "this isn't good enough." Bush himself championed the deal in his weekly radio address Saturday, insisting that it contained "all the elements required for comprehensive immigration reform", specifically rejecting the "amnesty" characterization, and noting that the agreed reform would "require that strong border security and enforcement benchmarks are met before other elements of the legislation are implemented."
Democratic objections to the immigration reform proposal have focused on its restrictions on the right of legal immigrants to be joined by their families and its preference for high-tech workers. Under the proposal, undocumented immigrants would be able to obtain a probationary card allowing them to live and work legally in the United States, but which would not place them on the road to permanent residency or citizenship. The proposal also seeks to create a temporary guest worker program that would be implemented once the borders are declared "secure." Up to 1.5 million migrant farm-workers can also obtain legal status through an "AgJobs" measure, supported by Sen. Diana Feinstein (D-CA) and Sen. Larry Craig (R-ID). AgJobs creates a five-year pilot program that would grant legal status to those who have worked in US farms for at least 150 days in the last two years.
Related listings
-
Bush vetoes war spending bill with pullout timetable
Law & Politics 05/01/2007[##_1L|1237133879.gif|width="135" height="114" alt=""|_##]U.S. President George W. Bush Tuesday vetoed a war spending bill that aimed to set a timetable for American troops to withdraw from Iraq, branding the bill "unacceptable." In a national televi...
-
Bush presses Japanese PM over beef trade dispute
Law & Politics 04/28/2007[##_1L|1115211297.jpg|width="110" height="128" alt=""|_##]President George W. Bush pressed Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Friday over a beef trade standoff, telling the leader in an official visit that Japanese consumers should be eating U.S. ...
-
Virginia governor may close gun loophole
Law & Politics 04/26/2007[##_1L|1287362237.jpg|width="142" height="117" alt=""|_##]Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine said during a Tuesday radio interview that he may be able to issue an executive order to close the loophole that allowed Virgina Tech gunman Seung-Hui Cho to pur...

Is Now the Time to Really Call a Special Education Lawyer?
IDEA, FAPE, CHILD FIND and IEPs: The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) guarantees all children with disabilities to a free appropriate public education (FAPE). FAPE starts with a school’s responsibility to identify that a child has a disability (Child Find) and create an Individualized Education Program (IEP) to suit the needs of the child.
Forte Law Group is one of only a very few law firms within the state of Connecticut that is dedicated to exclusively representing families and children with special needs.
Parents need to be persistent, dedicated and above all else aware of the many services and accommodations that their child is entitled to under the law. As early as this point within your child’s special education, many parents will often find themselves in the situation asking, “is now the time to really call a special education lawyer?” Here are a few things to consider when asking yourself that question.