Sens. Sessions, Schumer Debate Immigration Reform, Gun Control
Senators Jeff Sessions (R-AL) and Charles Schumer (D-NY) on immigration and gun control.
JON KARL: Senator Sessions, you heard Senator Rubio's pitch to conservatives like you, in fact you specifically. Are you convinced?
SESSIONS: No, I'm not convinced. I know Senator Rubio's heart is exactly right. And I really respect the work of the gang of eight. But they have produced legislation, it appears -- although it looks like now it may be another week before we see it, that will give amnesty now, legalize everyone that's here effectively today and then there's a promise of enforcement in the future. Even if you pass laws today that appear to be effective, it doesn't mean they're going to be enforced.
And we have in this administration, a failure to enforce. So that's a big deal right now.
KARL: But doesn't Senator Rubio have a point that those that are here now effectively have amnesty? I mean, nobody is prosecuting the 11 million undocumented immigrants that are in the country right now.
SESSIONS: You're exactly right. We have got a real problem with that situation. And what we need to do is to analyze how to handle it, how to make sure that we do the right thing for America. I think it's incumbent on Republicans, Democrats, and every one of us to ask what is going to happen to working Americans whose wages have been falling since 2000 who are unemployed at a very high rate. It will impact them adversely. We have to ask how the new flow of workers is going to be maybe double the current flow of legal workers in the future, in addition to those who will be legalized, 11 million. How that will impact them.
So, I think the public interest is to figure out how we can deal with the crisis we face, how we can have a lawful system that serves the national interest without hammering, as the civil rights commission members have said, the average low-income worker, the African-American and Hispanic worker that's here.
KARL: So, Senator Schumer, is this amnesty first?
SCHUMER: No, not at all. This is a very balanced bill. The American people have told us to do two things. One, prevent future flows of illegal immigration and then, come up with a common sense solution for legal immigration. And that's what our bill does.
You know, we've worked long and hard on this so, we're very, very close. Every major -- every significant disagreement among the eight of us is resolved. And I expect we will -- the eight of us will introduce a bill on Tuesday. Obviously, there have been problems. But last Friday night, this past Friday night, under Dianne Feinstein's leadership, the last problem, agriculture, was agreed to. The growers and the farm workers are there. So of course, we've all said, until the eight of us sign that bill, put our names on it, Tuesday, we don't have final agreement.
But I see nothing in the way. And I think you'll see a major agreement that's balanced but fair, that will have the widespread support of the American people on Tuesday.
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