McCain to ILIR Let's Get it Done!

Irish Echo/Debbie McGoldrick/[[April 5, 2006]]/ link

SENATOR John McCain electrified an audience of more than 2,000 at an Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform (ILIR) town hall meeting in the Bronx last Friday, and expressed a strong belief that Congress will soon find common ground on a way to legalize a majority of the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S.

McCain, the Arizona Republican who is working in tandem with Democratic colleague Senator Edward Kennedy to win approval for a strong version of their McCain/ Kennedy reform bill in the Senate this week, also stressed that the recent pro-immigration rallies in the U.S. are having a significant impact on the shape of the debate on Capitol Hill.

...The McCain meeting was another triumphant outing for ILIR and its committed, thousands-strong membership, many of whom were wearing the group's "Legalize the Irish" t-shirts on the night.

Formed four months ago by Irish Voice publisher [[Niall O'Dowd]] and community activist Ciaran Staunton, ILIR's impact on the national immigration debate has been substantial, a fact that McCain acknow-ledged during his speech.

"So many of you have taken so much time and effort, including the 3,000 of you who traveled to Washington, D.C. last month, and you are being heard," McCain said, referring to the ILIR rally on Capitol Hill on March 8. McCain spoke at the event, and was so impressed by the group's efforts that his staffers immediately contacted ILIR to arrange a meeting in the Bronx.

...McCain's words for Congressman Tom Tancredo, Republican of Colorado who is a strident opponent of offering any type of legalization to the undocumented, were far less friendly. "I don't usually respond to him," McCain said, "but what would I say to him? Well, come on in, the water's fine!"

Throughout the meeting, McCain stressed the impossibility of physically seeking out 11 million undocumented residents and deporting them. "I would like someone to explain to me how that could be done," he said.

"Some believe we should round them up and send them back. I don't know how you do that, and I don't know why you'd want to. Of course, post-September 11 America must enforce its borders, and protect against people who want to come here to do us harm.

"But (the undocumented) have grasped the lowest rung of our ladder. They want to rise, and we should let them. Let them come out of the shadows, pay a fine, stay employed, pay taxes, and earn their citizenship. We all will be the better for it."

..."I know that sooner or later 'we will prevail. In the meantime, how many people suffer in the shadows? Every day someone is being abused or mistreated. That's not what America is supposed to be all about."

..."Last fiscal year 410 people died in the desert of Arizona. They died trying to come here to have a better life," he said. "One of those dead was a two year old girl. Another died with a rosary in her hand. There's a humanitarian side of this issue that we really do need to keep in mind."

..."And next time you hear discussion about the issue (in the media), call in and speak up. When you explain to the American people the idea of earning citizenship, with the first priority enforcing borders, they understand."

...The meeting was attended by a number of political and Irish community leaders, including Congressman Eliot Engel, Irish Consul General [[Tim O'Connor]], Irish Embassy First Secretary Joe Hackett, Wall Street Access chairman and CEO Denis Kelleher and New York GAA Chairman Seamus Dooley. ILIR hosted a private reception where they had the chance to meet McCain, who was accompanied by his daughter Megan, before the meeting.