Senator Chris Dodd -Thank You For Your Help: Please Speak to Your Colleagues!

Photo: Senator Dodd and Jonathan, the "go green man"


IMMIGRATION
Bill might buy time for brothers facing deportation
A struggling Democratic presidential contender, Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd, has inserted himself into a South Florida immigration battle.
WASHINGTON --

Juan and Alex Gomez, the Kendall brothers who have been battling deportation orders, may be able to stay in the United States until 2009 under legislation filed by U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd, their attorney said Tuesday.

Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat who is running for president, filed a bill on the Colombian-born students' behalf late Monday, said Cheryl Little, executive director of the Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center.

''This is the news we've been waiting for,'' Little said. ``Finally, Juan and Alex can have some semblance of a normal life, though we still have our work cut out for us.''

In most cases, a bill like the one filed by Dodd brings deportation proceedings to a halt for the rest of the congressional term. The current term ends in 2009, giving attorneys a chance to pursue the family's legal appeal.

Little said extra time will also allow immigration advocates to lobby for the DREAM Act, which would offer students who grew up in the United States -- like the Gomez boys -- a chance at legal residency.

Critics see the act as a form of amnesty and predict that it will not make headway.

''We see it as amnesty and as such would encourage more parents to put their children at risk by bringing them here illegally,'' said Caroline Espinosa, a spokeswoman for NumbersUSA, a nonprofit that aims to reduce immigration.

...Dodd serves as chairman of the Western Hemisphere subcommittee of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and has met with 49 heads of state from Latin America and the Caribbean over the past two decades, according to his campaign. Like his better-known Democratic rivals for the nomination, he supports legislation that would allow illegal immigrants to earn citizenship.

...Neither of the senators from Florida -- Democrat Bill Nelson and Republican Mel Martinez -- has become directly involved in the case. Nelson is a co-sponsor of the DREAM Act, while Martinez said he didn't think it was appropriate to attach immigration reform to a defense spending bill.

''We're talking about pay raises for our great men and women in uniform, and those issues really need to have center stage and not be clouded by what is a very controversial issue,'' Martinez said. ``I'm also very reticent to do any piecemeal immigration reform. I really don't think it makes much sense.''

Díaz-Balart's bill to stop the brothers' deportation has yet to be heard by a committee, as required. The congressman is planning to rally with DREAM Act supporters today in Washington.

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