Shock: eVerify, Border Fence Provisions Mysteriously Vanish from Homeland Security Bill in Conference

But they're really determined to seal the borders and make sure that American jobs are taken by American workers.

What's especially obnoxious about this is that many Senators -- Democrats, mostly -- voted for these provisions earlier, but are of course happy to see them disappear from the actual vote. They trust the voters won't notice.

Hey, they voted for it, right? They had no intention of ever seeing it through to actual action, but they did get that one vote up on the record so they can claim they favor this stuff, right?

That's all that matters.

"We're learning there's almost nothing politicians won't do to get out of promises they make in the daylight," said Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., complaining that conferees dropped a provision that would have required the Homeland Security Department to build 700 miles of double-layered reinforced fencing along the southern border.

DeMint reminded senators that a majority of the Senate voted to include the provision in the spending bill.

One of the dropped provisions to draw protests would have permanently reauthorized the E-Verify electronic system employers can use to verify the legal status of their workers. Another would have required employers to take action if the Social Security number provided by a worker did not match records with the Social Security Administration.

"People can have little confidence based on our votes here on the Senate floor," said Sen. David Vitter, R-La. "The conference committee work can be diametrically opposed to it on issue after issue."

Thanks to Gabriel Malor.

posted by Ace at 01:11 PM

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