Nevada Voters Want E-Verify -- Will Their Sen. Reid Give In To Them?

By Roy Beck, Founder & CEO of NumbersUSA: A Zogby poll found that it is difficult to locate anybody in Nevada who doesn't support the E-Verify program to keep illegal foreign workers out of jobs. Yet, Nevada Sen. Reid has been blocking a long-term reauthorization of E-Verify for months. Friday, he finally gave in and said the Senate can vote on the program, but insiders say to watch out for a parliamentary trick that will block the vote at the last minute on Tuesday.

The recently released Zogby poll was taken just before Senate Majority Leader Reid pulled a parliamentary stunt on the Stimulus bill and killed a requirement that all Stimulus jobs be run through E-Verify to ensure that illegal aliens don't get them. Zogby found that 77.7% of Nevada voters wanted E-Verify in the Stimulus bill. But Reid pulled it out. You have to wonder just who Sen. Reid is working for. Frankly, it looks like some powerful force is holding something sinister over Reid's head because his consistent support for illegal immigration is so unpopular with voters who he will ask to re-elect him next year.

Why would he endanger his popularity at home by working against enforcement and working for the outlaw businesses and outlaw unions that rely on cheap, compliant illegal foreign workers? Secret promises to some campaign contributors may be the force causing him to work against nearly four of every five Nevada voters, some suggest, pointing out that the state's gambling industry that is so cozy with Reid has not always worked in the most honorable ways for the public good. These are ugly insinuations, but they are the kind of conjecture that arises when a Senator works so hard against the interests of his voters who overwhelmingly tell pollsters they disagree with his actions. . . .

The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) just announced a study that found illegal immigration costs Nevada $630 million annually. The state is looking in the face of big budget deficit. Its unemployment is over 9%. Nevada voters are growing restless and will become more so as they learn of Sen. Reid's preferential actions for illegal workers and the companies that hire them. Zogby found only 33.9% of Nevada voters approve of the amnesty that Sen. Reid recently promised that he will engineer through the Senate this year. And 76.5% of Nevada voters believe the illegal immigration favored by Sen. Reid has a negative impact on the state budget. The FAIR study concluded that Nevada taxpayers are paying $515 million a year to educate the children of illegal aliens, $85 million a year on unreimbursed health care for illegal aliens, and $31 million a year to incarcerate criminal illegal aliens. . . .

. . . Sen. Reid praises it in his letters to constituents. Pres. Obama praised it as a Senator. Even the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has said it doesn't mind it being reauthorized for voluntary use. Unfortunately, the amendment we are demanding this week won't really advance our battle against illegal hiring. That is, it doesn't mandate the use of E-Verify for anybody. It just continues what we already have. But at least it would end the uncertainty about the future of E-Verify for all those states, localities and businesses who are wondering if they can depend on it. And it would remove the bargaining chip that Reid and others had hoped they could use E-Verify for getting an amnesty passed this fall. . . . [Full Story]

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