Nationwide Raids Intensify Focus on the Employment of Illegal Immigrants
WASHINGTON — In raids that set a record for workplace-enforcement arrests in a single day, immigration officials announced Thursday that they had taken 1,187 illegal immigrants into custody at wood products plants in 26 states and had charged seven company managers with crimes that can carry long prison terms.
The operation targeted about 40 plants operated by IFCO Systems North America, a Dutch company based in Houston that is the largest manufacturer of wooden pallets in the country. Two California facilities were hit, with eight arrests in Bakersfield and 29 in San Bernardino.
Wednesday's raids, the culmination of a yearlong investigation, came at a sensitive time. Congress is returning from spring recess next week deeply divided on how to overhaul immigration laws.
Reaction to the raids reflected the well-drawn lines in the debate. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said in a statement, "A photo-op crackdown by [the Bush administration's Homeland Security Department] to prove a political point won't erase its failed record." But conservative Republicans hailed the action. "Reform starts with the border but doesn't stop there
The raids contained tacit warnings for everyone involved in the debate on immigration.
For conservative Republicans who have argued for a hard-line approach that focuses exclusively on tougher enforcement, the scale of the raids and the arrest of managers could be seen as a demonstration that the Bush administration could be trusted to enforce immigration laws vigorously. Though hiring illegal immigrants has been a crime since 1986, there has been virtually no enforcement of that law, a fact that angers conservatives.
President Bush, many moderate Republicans and most Democrats favor stricter security but say it can be effective only if accompanied by a program that allows foreign workers to enter the country legally and by provisions permitting most current illegal immigrants to earn legal status. Thursday's actions were a vivid reminder that such raids could become a regular feature of life for immigrants if a way out of the current impasse is not found and public unhappiness over the immigration problem grows.
The business community, which generally supports a program that would ensure a supply of foreign workers, has kept a low profile in the controversy. The arrest of managers Thursday served notice that its stake in the issue was more than economic.
