Senate votes to consider immigration bill

WASHINGTON, May 21 (UPI) -- The Senate voted Monday to consider the U.S. immigration reform bill but won't take up the measure until after the Memorial Day holiday.

The 69-23 vote to invoke cloture was a major advance for the bipartisan measure, which would offer legal status to millions of illegal immigrants currently in the Unites States, The New York Times reported. The Times said nearly 20 Republicans voted "yes," while only a few Democrats voted "no."

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said there is too much work to be done to push the bill through this week.

Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., called it a prudent and much-needed compromise to bring the borders under control.

"Our values are tarnished when we allow 12 million human beings to live in the dark shadows of abuse as undocumented immigrants," Kennedy said.

The bill would strengthen border controls, hike penalties for businesses using illegal immigrants, start a guest-worker program and evaluate qualifications of would-be immigrants.

Bill opponent, Sen. David Vitter, R-La., faulted the bill for offering "pure, unadulterated amnesty" to illegal immigrants. He said Americans would be against the bill if they knew what it contained.