Will Newly-Minted Senator Al Franken Support Real Solutions on Immigration?

America's Voice Blog

Posted 07/01/09 at 11:55am

Al Franken Yesterday we were happy to note that the Minnesota Supreme Court ended an epic 8-month legal dispute to determine who would represent the great state of Minnesota in the United States Senate. It must be a relief for the people of Minnesota to finally have two Senators again.

We were even happier to note that the newest member of the Senate and the Senate Judiciary Committee, often responsible for deciding immigration matters, appears to take a common-sense approach to the frequently-demagogued issue.

Way back in 2006, Al Franken laid out his position on the urgent issue of immigration reform. Franken stated, during an appearance on Scarborough Country:

I think these 11 million or 12 million undocumented people who are here, I think it`s un -- impractical to expect that we`re going to deport them. Many of them have children who are citizens, and brothers and sisters who are. I think what we have to do is tighten up the border. I think we have to figure out a -- a guest-worker program that limits the number of people who come in and that treats them well and treats America -- and is fair to American-born workers.

The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that Franken:

"Says it's not practical to deport 12 million illegal immigrants."

Finally, Franken's campaign website stated that he does not "believe in breaking up families." It continues:

Instead, we should look to bring them out of the shadows and put them on a path to citizenship, providing that they: have been working, have paid taxes, have not committed any crimes since coming to this country, speak, or are learning to speak, English and pay a nominal fine. We should also ensure that those immigrants currently in the process of becoming citizens are not disadvantaged by these reforms.

Overall, these statements are an encouraging sign that the Senator is likely to help support smart solutions that restore order and justice to our broken immigration system.