A bill to make technical corrections to section 1244 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, which provides special immigrant status for certain Iraqis, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Now I must oppose this legislation, Mr. Speaker. It amends flawed legislation enacted this year that unjustifiably bypassed the normal committee process.

The National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2008 contained an expansive new refugee program that could result in well over 100,000 refugee admissions to the United States over the next 5 years. This provision was never considered, let alone approved, by the Judiciary Committee or on the House floor.

It's simply irresponsible for this Congress to hand out over 100,000 green cards without allowing for the normal deliberative review process. The provision grants 5,000 ``special immigrant'' green cards a year for the next 5 years to Iraqi nationals who meet the following criteria: They are citizens or nationals of Iraq; they were employed by or on behalf of the United States Government in Iraq on or after March 20, 2003, and they were employed for not less than a year; they provided faithful and valuable service to the United States Government; and they have experienced or are experiencing an ongoing serious threat as a consequence of their employment by the U.S. Government.

Now, I would say, Mr. Speaker, that our military that served in the line of fire has experienced a threat as a consequence of their employment of the U.S. Government, so has most everyone who has served any duty in that country. And this is a wide-open definition that allows the State Department to make a determination based upon a broad definition that says if they've experienced an ongoing serious threat as a consequence of their employment, and ``ongoing'' is not defined.

This provision is well-intentioned, however, it is problematic for a number of reasons. First, the State Department estimates that each of the 5,000 beneficiaries will bring an average of four family members with them who will not count against the cap. Therefore, the provision would result in, according to State Department estimates, upwards of 25,000 green cards being granted per year for 5 years. My math on that is 125,000, Mr. Speaker. Given that legal immigration now regularly exceeds 1 million persons a year, and the American people, by overwhelming margins, do not want to see further increases at least until we enforce the law and get operational control of the border, these numbers today are irresponsible.

Second, the provision will produce a drain for pro-U.S. and pro- democracy Iraqis actually living in Iraq. This potential exodus may prove devastating to efforts to rebuild that country.

Third, the provision grants refugee status to aliens who do not meet the long-standing statutory definition of a refugee--a person who is persecuted or who has a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a social group, or political opinion. That's the definition that exists today that the State Department could act under, Mr. Speaker. But we should not be setting such precedent without very careful deliberation.

Fourth, terrorists could easily infiltrate this program and not only gain access to the U.S., but attain the benefits of legal permanent residence and then U.S. citizenship. These benefits include the ability to travel the world over with the knowledge that one can easily return to the U.S., leaving us more vulnerable.

The inclusion of this refugee program in the Department of Defense authorization bill without adequate deliberation was a mistake, and in this follow-on bill it also is a mistake. Therefore, I cannot support today's legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I would reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, this discussion is about the technical changes to existing ill-advised legislation that came through this Congress, not through the Judiciary Committee, but it came to this floor without the due process and the consultation that would come from people on both sides of the aisle that could have examined this and measured the consequences, in fact, the unintended consequences of this legislation.

Under current law the President can set the number of refugees, and the Secretary of State administers this. We've met with the Secretary of State on this, and the definition I provided in my remark of existing law that is well-founded and well-tested says that the refugees meeting this standard can come into the United States under a number of items as agreed to by the administration, generally by the Secretary of State. And a person who would qualify would be a person who is

persecuted or who has a well-founded fear of persecution on account of their race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. These applicants that would come under this standard don't meet this standard that exists under refugee law because the threat is not as great, and they want to open this up for folks that have not faced a threat that is as great.

So now the language that's in the bill that we are seeking to technically correct here is language that says, well, what kind of standards do they meet? Well, up to 125,000 of them, perhaps, over this 5-year period of this authorization, what do they have to be? They have to be an Iraqi. They have to have worked for Uncle Sam. Their work had to have had value. And then they had to have experienced or maybe currently are experiencing a serious threat. And I will submit that everybody that works for the Federal Government experienced a threat. Anybody that set foot inside the Green Zone experienced a threat. Anybody that set foot outside the Green Zone probably experienced a greater threat. So the experience of the threat that's defined in this bill is opened up to all Iraqis that might want to present themselves if they are an Iraqi; if they worked for the Federal Government, if Uncle Sam cut them a check, worked for a year; and then if their work had value, which I think all work really does have value.

So what we're doing here is a technical correction that shouldn't have been passed in the first place, that should have gone through the regular order, that should have been submitted to the committee process, who would have had the opportunity to examine the effect of the numbers in this open door for perhaps 125,000.

So we can talk about process here, Mr. Speaker, and we can debate about the right way to bring legislation through so that we have an opportunity to perfect that legislation. But I think the bottom line is there's a consequence to this that weighs poorly for the Iraqi people in general. And that is if this legislation is technically corrected today, if this legislation passes and receives the signature of the President and becomes law, perhaps 125,000 Iraqis, perhaps more, can come to the United States under a standard that's looser than the refugee standard that the Secretary of State has to uphold today, and a Nation of about 26 or 27 million people could lose 125,000 of its best citizens and its best people. The allies of the United States of America and coalition forces, the people who believe the most in freedom, those who stepped up and did put their lives on the line, those that will be the vitality to rebuild a country that's emerging from the surge and continuing day by day, and the numbers and the data that we are looking at look more and more optimistic, they need good people.

It's people that are policy. We know that in our own offices. We know that within our companies. We know that within our own military, within our own government. People are policy. Good people in Iraq will rebuild Iraq. We need people there. I want to see Americans go there to help. I want to see the Iraqi people stay there and rebuild their country. That's a high level of patriotism for them to show.

This is a bill that discourages that and actually works inversely to the best interests of the United States and the best interests of Iraq. So I urge its defeat.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. President, I am pleased to join the bipartisan group of Senators on this bill who all recognize our obligation to help those Iraqis who have assisted the United States in Iraq. This legislation will remove obstacles encountered by the Departments of

State and Homeland Security in issuing the 5,000 special visas that Congress authorized in January for those Iraqi citizens.

As part of the 2008 National Defense Authorization Act, Congress provided 5,000 special immigrant visas for Iraqis who had aided the United States as interpreters in the country. As chairman of the Judiciary Committee, I have supported these efforts. The Departments of State and Homeland Security seem stymied and unable to implement what Congress has provided. In our efforts to remove any impediment to fast implementation and address any excuse for further delays, we seek passage of this bill as well, to cut through bureaucratic stalling and technical requirements.

This administration has been woefully slow in recognizing its responsibilities not only to those Iraqis who have helped us, but to all Iraqis who have been displaced or have fled the violence still plaguing that country. The relative inaction by the administration with respect to those Iraqis whose lives are in grave danger due to their assistance of the United States is especially troubling. Action is needed now. The Judiciary Committee held its first hearing on this humanitarian problem more than 15 months ago. That hearing on the plight of Iraqi refugees was among our first, in January 2007. In the interim, the administration has continued to make promises it cannot, or will not keep with respect to the resettlement of Iraqi refugees in the United States.

The administration's failure to acknowledge the Iraqi refugee crisis is emblematic of its inability to address other serious human rights issues that are much of its own making. The injustice resulting from the administration's interpretation of the material support and terrorism related bars that were enacted following September 11, 2001, continues to deprive legitimate asylum seekers of our protection. The consequences of these laws continue to go unaddressed, despite the fact that Congress has now twice given the Department of Homeland Security the authority to alleviate the situation. While Secretary Chertoff is unwilling to use this authority to provide asylum to those who need our protection, he has repeatedly used the vast authority ceded to him by proponents of the REAL ID Act to waive landmark environmental laws in the course of constructing a border wall between the United States and Mexico.

This month, during the Judiciary Committee's oversight hearing on the Department of Homeland Security, I followed up by asking Secretary Chertoff about his Department's lack of progress on implementing the authority Congress has given to him to remedy the material support and terrorism bars. At that time, I challenged him to fulfill the goal of legislation I authored and Congress enacted to provide relief to individuals such as Saman Kareem Ahmad, who received a commendation from General Petreaus for his work on behalf of the United States in Iraq and instructs U.S military personnel in preparation for service in Iraq. Although Mr. Ahmad was granted asylum, his application for a green card was denied because the organization with which he had once served, the Kurdistan Democratic Party, was deemed a ``terrorist organization'' by DHS. I urged Secretary Chertoff to use the authority he has been given to ensure that individuals like Mr. Ahmad were not denied a place in the United States because of inflexible and expansive readings of the so-called ``material support'' bar. I hope the administration takes the opportunity Congress has given it to correct this wrongheaded policy and practice. It is long past the time for this administration to take action and acknowledge the severe humanitarian consequences of its policies, whether in Iraq, or at our shores where the persecuted are seeking refuge.

Providing for the safety of our Iraqi allies is only one aspect of an increasingly severe humanitarian crisis in Iraq. Refugees International recently reported that in the vacuum left by the failure of the Iraqi government to address the plight of millions of its internally displaced citizens, various non-state militias are providing assistance to those who are suffering. By the report's account, these militias are finding fertile ground for recruiting among this population, with the Shiite Sadrist movement now being the ``main service provider'' to displaced Iraqis. We have been pressing the administration for some time to acknowledge this crisis and to make increased efforts to assist those Iraqis who have been internally displaced or who have left the country. Now we learn that the dangers associated with the administration's failure to recognize the magnitude of this crisis go beyond the terrible human cost that has resulted and threaten to undermine any efforts to bring positive change to Iraq.

The bill the Senate approves today will be another effort to encourage this administration to fulfill its obligations to those who have sacrificed significantly to assist the United States. It is my hope that this will end the unacceptable delays and provide long overdue relief.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill (S. 2829) to make technical corrections to section 1244 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, which provides special immigrant status for certain Iraqis, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, we owe a duty to protect foreign nationals who provide valuable service to our soldiers, diplomats, and other government officials overseas. Often these individuals risk their lives and those of their families to assist and protect our endeavors and our people. It's only right that we give them the assistance and protection that they need.

When we pulled out of Vietnam, Vietnamese citizens who worked for our government, as well as their families, were at great risk of being killed if they remained in Vietnam. To protect them, we gave them the opportunity to resettle in the United States. That was the right thing to do then and it is the right thing to do now for those who help us in Iraq.

This bill addresses two problems that currently interfere with our ability to protect those who deserve our protection. The first is a drafting error in the new Special Immigrant Visa Program that we enacted in January for Iraqis whose lives were at risk because of their valuable service to our government. The visas under this program were supposed to be available beginning this fiscal year, but the drafting error has rendered these visas unavailable until the next fiscal year. In the interim, we can't help those who need our help. Many of those could die because of this drafting error. This bill would correct the drafting error to ensure that these visas can be immediately accessed.

S. 2829 also serves to assist several hundred Iraqi and Afghan translators who, because of the error, continue to apply for visas under the older program. Although many of their applications have been processed and approved, they can can't come to the United States because of a cap at 500 visas in the program that has already been reached.

Despite having the support of the Department of Defense, the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security, these translators are without recourse and remain in danger. This bill addresses the problem by creating a 4-month transitional period under which the administration can allow persons with approved petitions in the old program to use one of the 5,000 visas in the new program.

We have all seen in the news that those who have chosen to help us in our efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan are truly risking their lives for our Nation's interests. They are targeted by insurgents for having helped us, their families are targeted, and this bill helps us protect them.

I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlelady from Texas, Ms. Sheila Jackson-Lee.

(Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, again, we have seen ongoing news reports that those who have chosen to help us in our efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan are risking their lives for our Nation's interests, and it is appropriate that we give them assistance.

This bill is exactly what we thought we had done earlier in the year. This is a technical correction. It's not a change in policy. It is what we thought we were doing. In fact, I'm surprised we have opposition because we didn't think it was controversial. The Senate bill, just to read the original cosponsors, the Senate bill was introduced by Senators Kennedy and Lugar with bipartisan cosponsorship of Senators Leahy, Cornyn, Biden, McCain, Levin, Specter, Obama, Hagel, Durbin, Sununu, Cardin, Smith, Coleman, and Bond. An identical bill was introduced in the House by the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Zoe Lofgren) with original cosponsorship of Mr. Fortenberry, Mr. Conyers, Mr. Sensenbrenner, Mr. Skelton, Mr. Hunter, Mr. Berman, Ms. Ros- Lehtinen, Mr. Blumenauer, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr. Perlmutter, Mr. Pence, and Ms. Jackson-Lee of Texas.

Obviously those broad bipartisan cosponsors suggest that this is something that should not be controversial, especially when you consider it also has the strong support of the Department of Defense, the Department of State, and the Department of Homeland Security.

I would hope, Mr. Speaker, that we adopt the bill and do what we thought we were doing in January to protect our friends who have protected us.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Again, let me thank the members of the Judiciary Committee, the chairman and ranking member and the manager of this bill, Mr. Scott.

Mr. Speaker, this is a question of life or death. Many of us have traveled to Iraq. I just recently came back in the last couple of weeks. In fact, I was utilizing our delegation's Iraqi translators. We were out in the field, we were talking to Iraqi soldiers, and these translators were enormously important. They're utilized in Afghanistan as well.

But it is not just the translators and others in this realm, in this era, that we speak of. We remember those who ventured out in the early stages of this war that was initiated by this administration, individuals who jeopardized the lives of their families and themselves to really align themselves with U.S. soldiers, necessary vital components of serving the soldiers in order to save the U.S. soldiers' lives.

Some of these individuals still remain under threat in Iraq.

This is a balanced approach. This is an approach order offered by Senator Kennedy along with a number of bipartisan Senators. And let me pay tribute to Senator Kennedy. He has always looked to balance our security along with benefit. I pay tribute to him, and I particularly pay tribute to him for this initiative because what it says is for those who have been caught in an abyss, who have been caught in between and in betwixt now have 5,000 visas to be able to utilize to provide a safety net for them and their families.

There are millions of internally displaced persons in Iraq. It is a disruptive and an unstable situation. Those individuals who have lent their talents to the U.S. Government and the U.S. military face jeopardy. Many of their neighbors know what they have done.

So I rise to support this legislation because I believe it is a partnership between the Homeland Security Department and the State Department, working together to ensure, as they vet these individuals, that they have access to the visas.

The problem that this is fixing is that the loophole or the provision was closed, legitimately closed for legitimate requests, and individuals who were applying under an old process, that would not make them eligible. This simply clears up that problem. It vets the individuals to utilize the visas, and it helps to save lives.

I ask, Mr. Speaker, that our colleagues support this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 2829, an act to make technical corrections to section 1244 of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2008, which provides special immigrant status for certain Iraqis, and for other purposes.

This bill addresses two problems with our ability to protect those who deserve our protection. In January, we enacted a new Special Immigrant Visa, SIV, program for Iraqis whose lives are at risk because of their valuable service to our government. The SIVs were supposed to be available beginning this fiscal year. But a drafting error rendered the SIVs unavailable until the next fiscal year. The bill fixes these errors.

The bill also helps out a few hundred Iraqi and Afghan translators who, because of the error, continued to apply for visas under an older program. Although many of their applications have been processed and approved, they cannot come to the U.S. because of the 500 visa cap in that program has already been reached.

This bill would create a 4-month transition period under which the Administration can allow persons with approved petitions in the older program to use one of the 5,000 visas in the new program.

We owe a duty to protect foreign nationals who provide valuable services to our soldiers, diplomats, and other government officials overseas. These individuals risk their lives and that of their families, to assist and to protect our endeavors and our people. It is only right that we return the favor.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Judiciary Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. 2829 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate, and that any statements related to the bill be printed in the Record.