Focus on border security and the people in the country of illegal immigration debate, but the country's farmers want legislation to make them easier to hire workers.
In Michigan cherries, apples and other fruit producers that immigrants leave their repression of workers harvesting crops.
Hear the same complaint Christmas tree growers in the Appalachian Mountains, dairy farmers in Wisconsin and California, many of the fruits and vegetables business.
The recently approved Senate bill would allow experienced farm workers to become year-round residency qualifications. Another new program that will allow farmers to hire foreign "guest workers" under the temporary visa. But conservative critics say these programs amount "amnesty."
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Pat McGuire farmers in northern Michigan, the most potent symbol of the immigration debate is not grainy television camera to show people across the US-Mexican border surreptitiously slipping. Rather, it is plump red cherries and crisp apples rotting on the ground, because there is not enough workers to pick them up - the situation in the coming months may become a reality.
In the entire country with orchards, cherry trees already sagging under the weight of red clusters, but many trailers and wood hut, should be standing in the midst of the peasant families empty. McGuire waiting to hear whether the crew will appear in mid-July to pick his crop.
"We're running out of time," he said, while pulling his ripe fruit on the gentle slopes of Lake Michigan one mile inland cladodes checks.
Wisconsin dairy farmers from California's diverse and rich in fruit and vegetable producers in the Appalachian Mountains of Christmas tree growers, agricultural leaders have pleaded immigration bill in Congress, including a more relaxed, less complex rules employed farm workers.
Democratic-led Senate, some of the terms of the farm lobby, said that the recent removal of the measure is promising. Republican-controlled House of Representatives is expected to be issued shortly. But with a strong agricultural political influence on the decline, and its total number of employees has dropped to 2% of the population, it is uncertain how the industry will fare. Farmers complained shrinking labor pool overshadowed by ideological border security issues, and to give legal status of people in the country illegally.
McGuire, aged 42, a self-proclaimed conservative who usually votes Republican, American Farm Bureau Federation last week, they are one of the representatives on Capitol Hill. His group went to eight Michigan congressman's office and in the Senate, keyhole members or their employees.
"Each office has its own party speech," McGuire said, recalling a member of the relevant border security argument. But the border must already be fairly safe, McGuire said, "because we do not work in this country, we have had."
Michigan farmer employs approximately 45,000 seasonal workers in a typical year, many of them immigrants. Asparagus crop left in the field this spring because of picking too small.
In neighboring Wisconsin, migrant workers, employing more than 40% of the labor force in the increasingly large dairy operations, according to the 2008 University of Wisconsin study. Krentz, near Berlin 500 cows, milking, Kevin said that finding enough help local is a constant struggle.
Krentz, said: "This is not a 9-5 job." "This is a job to do, when fed cows, milking cows, when the crops harvested."
This situation constitutes a test, said House Republican Tom Nassif, president of Western Growers, a trade organization representatives in California and Arizona produce industry. Republicans held various positions in the Reagan administration, Nassif said that the party concerned illegal immigrants who tried to sabotage any chance of reform.
However, if the House does not find something, it can be passed, he said, voters "will be completely lost confidence in the party's ability to legislate in all countries, statistics show that the American people believe in immigration reform."
Industry maintained its chronic labor shortages, low wages is not a problem, but too few Americans are willing to deal with for a long time, the weather was hot and the other hardships of farm labor.
Nassif said: "The fact is that even child-rearing farm workers are farm workers."
Senate bill would allow experienced farm workers to get the "Blue Card", so that they qualify for year-round residency. Illegal entry into the United States the applicant will have to pay a fine catch on taxes, pass a background check. Another new program that will allow farmers to hire foreign "guest workers" will be issued three-year visa.
However, such a policy might be a hard sell with House conservatives deride "amnesty idea."
Rep. Justin Amash, whose district includes the western Michigan city of Grand Rapids and outlying farm country, is typical of Republicans feel the pressure from both sides.
Home state farmers visited his offices in Washington, DC, twice last week. Mark Youngquist, apple growers from Amash area, and later gave one of his assistants orchard tour. In a town hall meeting on the same day, the second session of the Republican agricultural labor shortage described as "a problem that we should deal with" and called on immigration compromise.
But Amash deportation opinion, that is not a real person that is in all the country 110,000 ways to deal with illegal drew roars. "They are criminals," one man protest.
Youngquist, 53 years old, another staunch Republican, said he hoped his fellow conservatives on immigration to fill job vacancies, and no one will take more sympathy. Their fees will be more intense border enforcement, he said. His migrant labor housing, which is usually half full, for the upcoming apple harvest is now "zero," he said. "We sat in a beautiful apple crop, unless things change, it did not get picked up."
 



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