CNN Lou Dobbs Tonight - Transcript
CNN Lou Dobbs Tonight - Transcript
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DOBBS: Tonight, Senate Finance Committee chairman Senator Chuck Grassley says he's had enough of the stonewalling from our nation's immigration bureaucracy. Senator Grassley demanding immigration officials release documents that allege shocking fraud and abuse he says puts this nation's very security at risk.
Senator Grassley joins me tonight from Capitol Hill. Senator, good to have you here. You say stonewalling to you?
SEN. CHARLES GRASSLEY (R), FINANCE CMTE. CHAIRMAN: Well, yes. You know, it's a cultural disease in a lot of the bureaucracies. It tends to be just a little bit worse in immigration.
I had a meeting last week with Commissioner Gonzalez. He promised me that he was totally interested in a lot of allegations that had come forth. And I believe these are responsible whistle- blowers that have brought me information. He promised me documents.
He was serious about looking into allegations but, you know, just yesterday or the day before, he gave an interview to -- I believe it was AP -- in which he was -- said that there wasn't much substance to these allegations.
Now in the meantime, I've asked for documents. I'm not getting the documents. Last night I sent a letter to him with a handwritten P.S. down at the bottom that I want the documents this year, not next year. DOBBS: And if you think Director Gonzalez is treating you, the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, like a second-class citizen, it makes you wonder what's going on with his organization period.
You said that -- you told the Senate Judiciary Committee that they'd be shocked to learn about the internal fraud and abuse at the Citizen and Immigration Service. Can you tell us specifically what you're talking about?
GRASSLEY: Well, yes. There's some gifts given out. There's some benefits given out for people presumably that don't qualify. There's not adequate review of people that qualify for L-1 visas. L-1 visas sometimes becomes a subterfuge to get people into this country to come in and out of will in place of the H-1B.
DOBBS: Senator, the idea that we can have a guest worker program -- Senator Bill Frist is moving that ahead. I just talked with Senator Arlen Specter. Emilio Gonzalez, the director, said in his confirmation hearings there was no way in the world you could carry that out with the inadequacy of his department. Now he's says you can. What you're telling us makes it sound like it would be a nightmare.
GRASSLEY: Well, yes. Can you imagine they can't do what they're doing right now with having 11 million people making applications staying in this country legally. In fact, I asked him exactly the same question that you raised when he was in my office just within the last week.
And he said -- all he could tell me is, he said, we're planning about how we can do it. But he didn't have an answer and right now, it's -- obviously, they wouldn't have the resources.
DOBBS: Senator, we're out of time. I've got to ask you with Senator Frist looking like he's toeing the line and where -- the White House and the Dubai ports deal -- where do you stand on it? For it or against it?
GRASSLEY: I would vote to not have the contract go through because I had 16 town meetings a week ago in my state. And very definitely this is not a popular thing in grassroots Iowa.
DOBBS: Senator Chuck Grassley, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, thanks for being with us.
GRASSLEY: Glad to be with you.
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