Congressman Paul Kanjorski's Voting Record on Illegal Immigration

WASHINGTON - Congressman Paul E. Kanjorski (PA-11) released the following statement with a compilation of his votes on illegal immigration and border security.

"The failure of the Bush Administration to enforce our current federal laws is one of the biggest contributors to the illegal immigration problem in the United States.  I oppose the Bush Administration's plans to give amnesty to the estimated 12 to 20 million illegal immigrants in our country. As such, I cosponsored legislation to pressure the Bush Administration to enforce our current laws in order to substantially reduce illegal immigration and greatly improve the security of our borders," Congressman Paul Kanjorski said. "I have consistently supported legislation to secure our borders and enforce our current federal immigration laws."

● Congressman Kanjorski opposed the Bush Administration's and the Senate's "comprehensive" plan to give amnesty to 12 - 20 million illegal immigrants and instead supports an "enforcement only" approach pertaining to illegal immigration;  

● Congressman Kanjorski is a cosponsor of legislation to pressure the Bush Administration to rigorously enforce the current laws of the United States to substantially reduce illegal immigration and greatly improve border security."  (House Resolution 499, 110^th Congress);

● Congressman Kanjorski voted in favor of legislation that would have made it a federal crime, rather than a civil offense, for illegal immigrants to be present in the United States unlawfully.  (H.R. 4437, the Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005 - Roll no. 661, 109^th Congress);

● Congressman Kanjorski voted in favor of legislation that would have shut off the illegal immigrant job magnet by mandating that employers confirm the authenticity of employees' Social Security numbers against a national database of legitimate numbers.  (H.R. 4437, the Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005 - Roll no. 661, 109^th Congress);

● Congressman Kanjorski voted in favor of legislation that would have directed the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to gain operational control of U.S. borders by providing for the systematic surveillance of the international land border through more efficient use of its personnel and of technologies such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), sensors, satellites, radars, and cameras.  (H.R. 4437, the Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005 - Roll no. 661, 109^th Congress);

● Congressman Kanjorski voted to provide $8.9 billion to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency for 2008, which was $139 million over President Bush's request and $886 million over 2007.  (H.R. 2638, Department of Homeland Security Appropriations, 2008 - Roll no. 491, 110^th Congress);

● Congressman Kanjorski voted to provide $4.8 billion for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for 2008, which was $24 million over the President's request and $331 million over 2007.  (H.R. 2638, Department of Homeland Security Appropriations, 2008 - Roll no. 491, 110^th Congress);

● Congressman Kanjorski voted in favor of legislation to authorize the construction of 700 miles of fencing along the Mexican border.  (H.R. 6061, the Secure Fence Act of 2006 - Roll no. 446, 109^th Congress);

● Congressman Kanjorski voted in favor of legislation to make it harder for illegal immigrants to get a driver's license in the United States.  (H.R. 418, the REAL ID Act of 2005 - Roll no. 31, 109^th Congress);

● Congressman Kanjorski voted in favor of legislation that would have created new criminal penalties for constructing illegal tunnels under the U.S. border, and doubled the penalties for smuggling illegal immigrants, drugs, weapons of mass destruction, or other illegal items if done through an illegal tunnel.  (H.R. 4830, the Border Tunnel Prevention Act of 2006 - Roll no. 469, 109^th Congress);

● Congressman Kanjorski voted in favor of legislation that would have prohibited gang members from being admitted into the United States under any circumstance and would have allowed certain gang members to be automatically eligible for deportation.  (H.R. 6094, the Community Protection Act of 2006 - Roll no. 465, 109^th Congress);

● Congressman Kanjorski voted in favor of legislation that would have clarified that state and local law enforcement officers have the "inherent authority" to apprehend any illegal immigrants and transfer them to federal custody, and would have directed the Justice Department to hire more attorneys to prosecute human smuggling cases.  (H.R. 6095, the Immigration Law Enforcement Act of 2006 - Roll no. 468, 109^th Congress);

● Congressman Kanjorski is a long-time supporter and cosponsor of legislation to make English the official language of the United States.  (H.R. 997, the National Language Unity Act of 2007, 110^th Congress);

● Congressman Kanjorski worked to ensure that illegal immigrants were prohibited from access to the Medicaid system.  (Letter to Chairman Dingell, 7/31/2007, 110^th Congress).

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