WHY THE RUSH?

“It’s understandable that the White House and its Senate negotiating partners want to rush through the compromise immigration bill they agreed to Thursday. Supporters acknowledge that the delicately balanced legislation could collapse if a single destructive amendment is attached to it. Its sponsors admit they want to minimize the political debate. ‘We all know this issue can be caught up in extracurricular politics unless we move forward as quickly as possible,’ says Sen. John McCain, a key architect of the bill. But this is no way to debate the most sweeping change to our nation’s immigration laws in two decades—especially since the last comprehensive attempt, the Immigration Reform and Control Act, failed so spectacularly. The new bill is set to pass with much less analysis in the Senate than the 1986 law, known as Simpson-Mazzoli, had. Senators did not even receive the bill draft until midnight Saturday. After a test vote scheduled for today, Majority Leader Harry Reid is planning a final vote on the bill this Thursday, only one week after the compromise was struck. Shouldn’t senators have time to actually read the bill they’re being asked to vote on?... Why the rush? Because, to be blunt, the senators don’t trust the American people to make sound judgments on such emotional issues as family reunification and national sovereignty.” —John Fund