Don’t ask me, I just vote here

After Robert Rector’s estimate came out the other week that 103 million persons would receive legal permanent residency in the U.S. during the next 20 years under S.2611, a number he lowered to 66 million under the amended bill, more than a few of us wondered, did the senators supporting the bill not know this? And why were the actual numbers of new immigrants under the bill not being discussed in the Senate? Now, under questioning from a Human Events reporter, several of those senators admit that they have no idea how many legal immigrants would come to the U.S. under the bill, and, moreover, they don’t seem to care, and, furthermore, they don’t seem to have spent two seconds thinking about the subject. See, for example, the exchange with Sen. Carl Levin (D.-Mich.):

HE: I’d like to ask you about the numbers for the immigration bill in terms of immigrants in the next 20 years. The Heritage Foundation is estimating 66 million. Is this too many or not enough in your opinion?

Sen. Levin: Is what too many?

HE: To bring in 66 million legal immigrants in the next 20 years? Do you think that would be a problem?

Levin: I haven’t seen the basis for that.

HE: But we don’t know what the numbers are. Does that bother you about this bill?

Levin: I’m skeptical of numbers until I see them.

Posted by Lawrence Auster at June 06, 2006 07:59 AM | Send