Republican Senator Jon Kyl speaking about immigration reform at the Tucson Chamber of Commerce on April 5:

A group of senators who voted against last year's bill, and a group of some of the senators who voted for the bill, along with the White House and in particular, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez - have been meeting to try to see if we can achieve a consensus around a bill that will provide us with meaningful immigration reform that can get passed and sent to the President for his signature before the end of this year. We're spending scores of hours a week on this endeavor. I am cautiously optimistic that, even though we come to the table with very different views about what ought to be done, with a constructive attitude, we will be able to get a bill that could pass and be signed by the President.

Immigration arrests are down this year, not because the Border Patrol isn't doing its job, but because there are fewer attempts to cross the border illegally. It's because of the fencing, the vehicle barriers, the additional border patrol agents, the surveillance equipment, and the other activities that have helped control the border - but that process needs to move forward.

We're going to need some additional labor in this country as time goes on in certain areas, in certain occupations, and at certain times. The best way to achieve that is through a temporary worker system that allows people to come to the United States when work is available that they want to do and is not being done by Americans - but on a temporary basis."

Securing the border, enforcing the law, a simple employee verification system, a temporary worker program, and resolving the status of illegal immigrants - those are the key elements of immigration reform. I'm hopeful we can reach a consensus on all of these views.

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