Congressional Briefing
Boyda weighs in on immigration reform
Posted Monday, April 30, 2007
Here are today's headlines from the Kansas congressional delegation:
Rep. Nancy Boyda (D)
(Chicago Tribune) Bipartisan group of senators to push immigration plan: An unusual bipartisan group of senators hopes to present this week the outlines of an immigration plan designed to win crucial support from conservatives. If they succeed, President Bush is expected to throw his support behind the plan, which could mark his final chance for a major domestic accomplishment in his second term. This effort comes against the backdrop of expected mass marches and demonstrations supporting immigration rights on Tuesday in major cities. A large rally is expected in Washington. ... It is not only Republicans who oppose comprehensive reform. House Democrats include several conservative voices on immigration, particularly among freshman representatives from rural and working-class districts. Rep. Nancy Boyda, D-Kan., is one of them. "People do not trust, and they don't believe that the enforcement and the border protection is going to be there," Boyda said. "We need a system that's workable, that employers can use to see who's here legally. But no effort has really been made to implement that."
Rep. Dennis Moore (D)
(Watertown Daily Times commentary) No Child Left Behind needs a lot of tweaking: ust over five years ago, Congress approved a broad expansion of the federal government's role in education by passing the No Child Left Behind Act. The landmark legislation, which made it through the Senate and House with overwhelming majorities, aims to bring all students up to grade level in reading and math skills by 2014 through mandatory testing and penalties for failing to meet objectives.
But the future of the law is in doubt. ... The A-Plus Act, proposed by a group of congressional Republicans, would allow states to avoid the yearly tests, which is the key to holding districts accountable. Another proposal from Rep. Dennis Moore, a Democrat, would suspend testing requirements until Washington appropriated additional funding.
Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R)
(AP) TV stations denounced for rejecting anti-gun ad: Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York has questioned a Wichita television station's refusal to air a commercial that is part of his anti-gun campaign. The ad features a Minnesota police chief saying that federal legislation is keeping him from getting information about where guns in his community are coming from and who is buying them. CBS affiliate KWCH of Wichita said the ad is misleading. Another station in Wichita, NBC affiliate KSN, also decided not to run the ad "because the station could not verify its claims," according to a story on its Web site. The measure at issue is known as the Tiahrt amendment, for its author, Rep. Todd Tiahrt, a Kansas Republican, who represents Wichita. It is typically attached to appropriations bills each year.
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