–NumbersUSA today announced that Congressman Sam Graves (MO-06) received an “A” rating for his voting record and actions to combat illegal immigration and promote sustainable legal immigration in 2013, tops among members of the Missouri delegation. Graves earned a 92 percent overall rating in the first session of the 113th Congress – third highest in the U.S. House – and received “A+” marks in the areas of reducing illegal jobs and amnesty enticements, among other topics. According to the organization, Graves’ overall career grade remains an “A+” with last year’s strong rating. NumbersUSA was founded to promote the findings of the bipartisan U.S. Commission on Immigration Reform chaired by civil rights leader and former Congresswoman Barbara Jordan (D-TX).
“Our primary goal in any immigration plan should be to control and defend our borders,” said Graves, who last year introduced the Secure America with Verification and Enforcement (SAVE) Act. “This is an important responsibility of the Federal government and we are not doing enough, as made evident by the over 11 million illegal immigrants currently in the country. Additionally, our government must do everything possible to ensure the American workforce consists of legal workers, especially during these tough economic times, which is why my bill includes improvements to E-Verify.”
BACKGROUND: The Secure America with Verification and Enforcement (SAVE) Act (H.R. 830)increases border security with the addition of 5,000 Border Patrol Agents and improves infrastructure with additional fencing and vehicle barriers at the border. It also enhances existing interior enforcement by increasing the number of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and expediting the process of removing illegal aliens from the U.S.
The SAVE Act also expands and mandates E-Verify to provide American employers with the tools they need to ensure that their employees are legally permitted to work in the U.S. E-verify is an effective, inexpensive, and quick way for employers to verify employment authorization. More than 200,000 employers already utilize the highly successful program on a voluntary basis.