WASHINGTON (USA Today) April 30, 2007 —
While Congress and the White House remain divided over what to do with
the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants now living in the United
States, a new poll shows the American public appears to have reached a
consensus on the question.
A USA TODAY/Gallup Poll taken last
weekend of 1,007 people found that 78 percent of respondents feel people
now in the country illegally should be given a chance at citizenship.
The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., who is
drafting legislation to grant illegal immigrants an opportunity to stay
in the United States, said, "As with so many issues, the American people
are ahead of Washington on immigration reform. They know that only a
plan that offers a path to earned citizenship will fix our broken
system."
Disagreements about the fate of the
nation's illegal residents were a major factor in the deadlock that kept
Congress from enacting an immigration bill last year, despite the
support of key Democratic and Republican leaders, as well as President
Bush. The president and members of his Cabinet, including Homeland
Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, have said it would be prohibitively
expensive to deport all the nation's illegal residents.
But many conservatives strongly oppose
putting illegal immigrants on a path to citizenship. "You'd be rewarding
them for breaking our laws," said Rep. Brian Bilbray, R-Calif.
Supporters of a plan to give illegal
immigrants a chance to stay in the United States expect smoother sailing
for legislation in a Democrat-controlled Congress. Senate Majority
Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has set aside the last two weeks of May for
debate on an immigration bill; House Democrats hope to act before the
August recess.
