Immigration hot topic at Fortenberry talk in Hickman

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By DON WALTON / Lincoln Journal Star

HICKMAN -- Immigration, not Iraq.

Questioning Rep. Jeff Fortenberry over coffee Thursday, a small gathering of his constituents swiftly changed the subject from the congressman’s opening remarks on Iraq and farm policy.

Virginia Leacock of Lincoln, director of operations at Haven Manor in Hickman, triggered five straight questions on illegal immigration by raising her concerns about border security.

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Rep. Jeff Fortenberry answers questions from constituents at Urban's Creamery and Grill in Hickman on Thursday morning. (William Lauer)

Rep. Jeff Fortenberry answers questions from constituents at Urban's Creamery and Grill in Hickman on Thursday morning. (William Lauer)

Other topics raised during the hour-long meeting at Urban’s Creamery and Grill on Hickman Road included Medicare, Medicaid and agriculture. 

But no one asked, or expressed an opinion, about the war in Iraq.

Fortenberry told the group the first focus of immigration reform must be enhanced border security.

If illegal immigration issues are not addressed, including “a crackdown on unscrupulous employers,” Fortenberry said, continuing chaos and disorder will threaten both national security and good immigration policy that is just and humane.

Employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants not only exploit vulnerable people, he said, but also drive down wages and “push costs on schools, hospitals and the criminal justice system.”

Those issues must be resolved before even considering “how to accommodate illegal behavior,” he said.

The Bush administration has proposed comprehensive immigration reform that provides a pathway to legal status for most of the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants already settled in the United States.

During an interview after the meeting, Leacock said she recognizes immigration is a complicated issue and she wants it handled “in a humanitarian way.”

But, she said, she’s concerned about illegal immigration’s relationship to national security.

“There are a lot of fine individuals here, but some people, including the criminal element, are not going through the process,” Leacock said.

Other questioners expressed concerns about adequate funding for immigration enforcement, the ability to ascertain and employ a legal immigrant work force and the payment of taxes by illegal workers.

Fortenberry’s morning meeting with 21 constituents -- some wearing jeans and seed caps, others clad in informal business attire -- was part of a week-long sweep through a dozen communities in his 1st Congressional District.

From Hickman, he moved on to Beatrice, Milford and Wahoo.  He’ll be in in Peru, Plattsmouth, Elmwood and Ashland on Friday.

Fortenberry said the recent surge of additional U.S. soldiers into Iraq has resulted in “some good progress militarily.”

But, he said, it should be accompanied by increased pressure on the Iraqi government to move toward political accommodation and stability. 

That, in turn, should lead toward new regional diplomatic efforts and a shift in U.S. strategy to “a more supportive role,” Fortenberry said.

The U.S. military should begin to focus more on guarding Iraq’s borders, training Iraqi security forces and pursuing al-Qaida elements in Iraq, he said.

Then, he said, the United States can begin to plan for “a drawdown of our troops” from Iraq.

Reach Don Walton at 473-7248 or at dwalton@journalstar.com.