Womack Said Reform Must Come After Border Security

Womack
Womack

SPRINGDALE -- Third District Rep. Steve Womack, R-Rogers, will not support other immigration reform measures until U.S. borders are more secure, he reiterated Tuesday after two days of meeting with constituents.

Womack also opposes the president making immigration law by executive orders under any circumstances, he said.

But the southern U.S. border is crossed so frequently, in part, because the legal channels of immigration are so unworkable they aren't an option, said Jairo Reyes of Rogers. Fewer people would cross the border illegally if there was any chance of immigrating legally, he said. Therefore, a reformed system would reduce the flow of people and make border security easier to achieve, Reyes said.

Reyes attended a "Coffee with the Congressman" event in Rogers on Monday, where he and Womack discussed the immigration issue. Womack held his second forum this week Tuesday at Arvest Ballpark in Springdale.

Womack said he and Reyes had a good discussion but his position on a more secure border hadn't changed. Control of the border is needed for any policy the U.S. could adopt to work, Womack said. "Any attempt to engage in immigration reform without first securing the border is foolhardy," he said.

"Even a baby or a toddler can cross it," Womack said of the southern border, referring to the growing problem of children crossing the border. That crisis kept the House in Washington on Friday to pass a response. However, the Senate adjourned and rejected House requests to return and act on the bill. President Barack Obama has said he wouldn't support the House bill and would respond to the border situation through executive authority.

"If you don't like the laws, you don't get to make up your own even if you're president," Womack said.

One aspect of the House bill Obama took particular exception to was a provision to strip funding for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, commonly known as DACA. It places deportation of minors who pose no threat to U.S. security or public safety at a very low priority and grants immigration authorities discretion on whether to prosecute such cases.

"I was brought over from Mexico when I was 1 year old," Reyes said. "I've never been back." His family own restaurants and have made a successful life in the United States, yet they remain in limbo.

Womack said he respects the Reyes' family's situation but cannot agree to reform while the borders remain porous. "Not everyone crossing the border comes here to make a better life," Womack said. There are crossings for illicit purposes such as drug trafficking, for instance, he said.

NW News on 08/06/2014

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