Feinstein working for "blue" cards for California's immigrant farm workers

Immigration reform was today's hot topic on Capitol Hill. Democrats and Republicans view the issue through starkly different lenses.

Garlic, peppers, lettuce. Democratic U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein listed the crops that used to grow in California, but increasingly are imported to the United States because domestic farmers can’t find workers. "California’s asparagus crops will disappear completely in the Imperial Valley if the demand for specialized asparagus planters and harvesters is not met," Feinstein said.

Feinstein told the subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees and Border Security she’s introducing a bill that would grant five-year “blue” cards to agricultural workers. She admits it’s not a permanent solution to the nation’s immigration problems. But given the political realities, she says, it’s the “best we can do right now.”

The measure would allow an agricultural worker who has met certain criteria to be able to remain in the country with his family, provided that individual works agriculture a certain number of days a year. Feinstein says this is no "amnesty" program.

Eric Ruark of the Federation for American Immigration Reform told senators the problem is low wages. Ruark says farmers are profiting from hiring illegal workers while they pass on the economic and social costs of undocumented labor to the American people.

Feinstein will have to find 60 votes in the Senate; the bill faces a tougher challenge in the GOP-led House. Last week, a House committee approved a bill aimed at the estimated 12 million undocumented people who live in this country. It would require all employers to verify work status using the online data base known as E-Verify. A House hearing this week suggested that the Obama administration's focus on apprehending convicted criminal aliens translates into "amnesty" for other undocumented immigrants.