Lawmakers pursue remnants of failed bill (AP)

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

Lawmakers pursue remnants of failed bill

By CHARLES BABINGTON, Associated Press Writer
21 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - Hours after a massive immigration bill collapsed
in the Senate, lawmakers and lobbyists began seeking ways to
pass bits and pieces of the measure important to their
constituents.

A priority for many farm groups is the "Ag jobs" component,
one of several programs now needing a new legislative vehicle.
It would legalize about 1 million undocumented agricultural
workers in the U.S., a key goal of growers whose crops can
rot in the fields if not harvested at key times by people willing
to work hard at low wages.

The program is considered relatively popular, as is another
piece of the stalled bill: the DREAM Act, or Development,
Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act. It would create a
path to legality for illegal immigrants planning to attend
college or join the military and who came to the United
States with their families before they turned 16.

Some lawmakers said they hope Congress will enact such
programs as stand-alone bills fairly soon. Others, however,
said it will be difficult to pass even noncontroversial parts by
themselves. Backers of items likely to be left out, they said,
will resist losing the political leverage that a multifaceted
package can provide.

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Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070629/ap_on_go_co/congress_immigration_50