THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 21, 1996 TAG: 9603210429
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: THE NEW YORK TIMES
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium: 63 lines
After a testy partisan debate, the House overwhelmingly approved a measure Wednesday that would allow states to deny public education to illegal immigrant children.
The Supreme Court ruled in 1982 that illegal immigrant children were entitled to a public education, and federal courts have decided that meant the states had to accommodate them in kindergarten through 12th grade.
But in an unusual floor appearance, Speaker Newt Gingrich criticized the requirement as a magnet for illegal aliens and an unfair financial burden on states. California alone spends $1.7 billion a year to educate more than 300,000 illegal immigrant pupils, Gingrich said.
``This is totally unfair,'' he said. ``Come to America for opportunity. Do not come to live off law-abiding taxpayers.''
A leading Democrat immediately accused Gingrich of playing to public anxieties over illegal aliens to win political points.
``It's outrageous that the speaker of the House comes down here to try to make partisan gains,'' said Rep. John Bryant, a seven-term Texas Democrat. ``Shame on you, Mr. Speaker!''
Democrats and even some Republicans asserted that the Republican-sponsored amendment to the House immigration bill was a mean-spirited measure that would drive young children into the hands of violent street gangs.
``These children didn't choose to be in this country illegally,'' said Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla. ``They don't deserve to be punished.''
The vote Wednesday was 257-163, with 44 Democrats supporting the amendment and 20 Republicans opposing it.
The measure may ultimately prove more symbolic than substantive. The White House strongly opposes the measure, and its chances in the Senate are murky.
But the anger and frustration behind Wednesday's vote reflected a groundswell of opposition to the few benefits illegal aliens now receive: emergency medical care and schooling for their children. This sentiment is especially strong in border states like California. The education amendment echoed provisions in Proposition 187, which California voters approved in 1994 but has since become snarled in the courts.
The overall House bill, the most sweeping immigration legislation in 30 years, would crack down on illegal aliens by increasing the number of border patrol officers and federal prosecutors handling alien-smuggling cases.
After a period of five years, the bill sets a goal of reducing the number of legal immigrants by more than 30 percent. The bill would cap the number of political refugees entering the country at 50,000 a year. ILLUSTRATION: HOW THEY VOTED
A ``yes'' vote is a vote to add the amendment to the bill.
Herbert H. Bateman, R-Va. Yes
Owen B. Pickett, D-Va. Yes
Robert C. Scott, D-Va. No
Norman Sisisky, D-Va. Yes
Eva Clayton, D-N.C. No
Walter Jones Jr., R-N.C. Yes
KEYWORDS: ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS by CNB