Voted in 1996 to continue chain migration

Sen. Ford in 1996 voted against the Simpson Amendment to S.1664. It was a vote in favor of a chain migration system that has been the primary reason for annual immigration levels snowballing from less than 300,000 in 1965 to around a million. Sen. Ford supported provisions that allow immigrants to send for their adult relatives. Then each of those relatives can send for their and their spouse's adult relatives, creating a never-ending and ever-growing chain. The bi-partisan Barbara Jordan Commission recommended doing away with the adult relative categories (begun only in the 1950s) in order to lessen wage depression among lower-paid American workers. The Simpson Amendment attempted to carry out that recommendation. But Sen. Ford helped kill the reform by voting with the 80-20 majority against the amendment. Sen. Ford's vote helped continue a level of immigration that the Census Bureau projects will result in a doubled U.S. population in the next century.

Voted in favor of chain migration in 1996

Sen. Ford voted in 1996 against the Feinstein Amendment to S.1664. The Feinstein Amendment would have reduced annual admission of spouses and minor children of citizens to 480,000 and significantly reduced annual limits other categories of chain migration such as parents of citizens and adult unmarried children of citizens. By voting against the Feinstein Amendment, Sen. Ford voted in favor of a system of chain migration that has been the primary reason for annual immigration levels snowballing from less than 300,000 in 1965 to around a million today. In 1996 the bi-partisan Barbara Jordan Commission recommended doing away with the adult relative categories (begun only in the 1950s) in order to lessen wage depression among lower-paid American workers. The Feinstein Amendment attempted to carry out that recommendation. The Feinstein Amendment would have had an overall impact of reducing U.S. population growth by about 1.2 million over 10 years, but it was defeated by a vote of 26 to 74.

Voted against huge immigration increase in 1990

Sen. Ford was part of a significant minority in 1990 who stood firm against legislation that radically increased annual immigration numbers. Traditional American immigration had averaged around 250,000 a year until the 1980s when it dramatically rose to around 500,000. Then in 1990 Congress passed legislation that removed or increased limits in most immigration categories. Since then, immigration has risen to around 1,000,000 (one million) a year. Virtually none of that increase would have occurred if Sen. Ford’s hand had been the only one on the congressional lever. He voted twice against the 1990 bill.

Nearly doubled H-1B foreign high-tech workers in 1998

Sen. Ford helped the Senate pass S.1723 in a 78-20 vote. Enacted into law, it increased by nearly 150,000 the number of foreign workers high-tech American companies could hire over the next three years. Although the foreign workers receive temporary visas for up to six years, most historically have found ways to stay permanently in this country. Sen. Ford voted for more foreign workers even though U.S. high tech workers over the age of 50 were suffering 17% unemployment and U.S. firms were laying off thousands of workers at the time.

Voted to allow firms to lay off Americans to make room for foreign workers in 1998

Before the Senate passed the H-1B doubling bill (S.1723), Sen. Ford had an opportunity to vote for a measure requiring U.S. firms to check a box on a form attesting that they had first sought an American worker for the job. Sen. Ford voted against that, joining those who said the requirement would give government too much authority over corporations’ right to hire whomever they please from whatever country.

Attempted to protect U.S. high-tech workers in 1998
Before the Senate passed the H-1B doubling bill (S.1723), Sen. Ford voted for the Kennedy amendment (A-2418) that would have protected American workers from the worst abuses that the federal Inspector General found in the H-1B program. He voted for the Kennedy amendment which would have forbidden U.S. firms from firing American workers to hire a foreign workers. It failed 38-60.

Sen. Ford has taken no action to reduce
the rewarding of illegal immigration by giving citizenship
to anchor babies.

Inviting / Repelling Illegal Aliens top

Voted to grant amnesty to nearly one million illegal aliens from Nicaragua and Cuba in 1997

Sen. Ford voted to grant legal status to Nicaraguans and Cubans who had lived in the United States illegally since 1995, along with their spouses and minor unmarried children. The overall ten year impact of this legislation will be the addition of some 967,000 people to U.S. population. There was no separate vote on the amnesty, as it was included in the DC Appropriations bill. The only opportunity Senators had to vote in favor of or against the amnesty was the Mack Amendment to S.1156. The Mack Amendment passed 99-1.

Voted in 1996 for major law that cracked down on illegal aliens.

Sen. Ford was part of a 97-3 majority which passed S.1664. It was a large omnibus bill with dozens of provisions aimed at reducing illegal immigration. It authorized major increases in the border patrol forces. But it also had many provisions aimed at making life more miserable for illegal aliens who manage to get into the country, half of whom arrive with legal visas but then illegally overstay. Until passage of the bill, a person could be apprehended as an illegal alien, be deported and then turn around and come back to the U.S. on a legal student, tourist, worker or relative visa. After the bill, an illegal alien was barred from any kind of legal entry for 10 years.

Tried to kill voluntary pilot programs for workplace verification in 1996

Sen. Ford voted IN FAVOR of the Abraham Amendment to S.1664. He was part of a coalition of pro-business conservatives and liberal civil libertarians who tried to use the amendment to kill the establishment of voluntary pilot programs in high-immigration states. The programs were intended to assist employers in verifying whether people they had just hired had the legal right to work in this country. Such verification is considered by many experts to be an essential tool for withdrawing the job magnet from illegal aliens. The verification system established by S.1664 did not involve an ID card. Rather it provided that when new workers wrote down their Social Security number on an application, employers could phone into a national verification system to help assure that the number was a real number and belonged to the person giving it. In earlier smaller pilot programs, businesses had hailed the verification system for making it easier for them to avoid hiring illegal aliens. Sen. Ford was unsuccessful in stopping the voluntary verification system. The Senate tabled the amendment by a 54-46 vote.