Rep. Paul Ryan: No Work Permits Until Enforcement is in Place
During an appearance on CBS's Face the Nation on Sunday, former vice presidential candidate and current Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) said that illegal aliens should not receive work permits until the border is secured and interior enforcement, including E-Verify, is in place. The Schumer-Obama amnesty bill grants instant work permits to the nation's 11 million illegal aliens before any increases in border security or mandatory E-Verify are in place.
Preceding Rep. Ryan's appearance on the program was Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) who was the main architect of the Senate-passed bill, S.744, but Face the Nation host Bob Schieffer did not discuss immigration with him. But here's how Rep. Ryan responded to asked about immigration reform in the House.
"We are not going take up the Senate bill in the House because we don't support the Senate bill," Rep. Ryan said. "We have been listening to the American people. So what we're going to do is take a step-by-step approach to get immigration right, not a big massive bill but separate bills so people know what's in these bills.
"Number one, Bob -- and just look at this terror threat we have -- we don't have control of our border. We don't know who is coming and going in this country. We need real border enforcement and that means we really don't trust the administration with the administration with discretion in this area. So we need a border enforcement law, first and foremost, that cannot be voided.
"We need interior enforcement and we need to fix our legal immigration system. Right now people come to this country based on family relations, not based on skills. Most other countries have a legal immigration system that's good for their country, we should do the same. And when it comes to the undocumented, people who came here illegally, we want to give people a chance to get right with the law while respecting the rule of law and that means not doing an amnesty. So, we have got specific ideas that we're looking at on how to get people and get right with the law, that means going on probation.
"You have it to go on certain terms of probation, and it's one track policy -- you don't meet the conditions of your probation. Pay fines, pay back taxes, get a background check, learn English, learn civics and make sure we have independently identified we have secured the borders. And have our interior enforcement provisions like e-verify and a visa tracking system in place. Then and only then can that person get a legal work permit, no special path way. And if a person in this situation wants to get in the line to get a green card, like any other immigrant, only at the back of the line, because we to be fair to that legal immigrant who did everything right in the first place."
To read and watch the entire interview, see CBSNews.com.