AWMA’s Day on the Hill Coincides with Senate Breakthrough on Immigration
As AWMA members walked the halls of Congress last Thursday, May 17, the U.S. Senate struggled to reach an historic deal to overhaul the nation’s immigration laws. By day’s end, the Bush administration and a bipartisan group of senators had reached agreement on sprawling immigration reforms that could bring an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants out of hiding while strengthening border protections and cracking down on employers of undocumented workers.
President Bush hailed the agreement as "one that will help enforce our borders, but equally importantly, it will treat people with respect." The fragile agreement is perhaps the last opportunity for President Bush to win a major legislative accomplishment during his second term of office. If approved, it will be the most significant change of the U.S.’s immigration system in over four decades.
Meanwhile, on the House side, Democrats and the White House rushed to finalize an Iraq spending bill before the Memorial Day deadline, with negotiations turning acrimonious as last week wore on. With the tensions and tight schedules clearly visible – and the voting bells clearly audible – AWMA members got a close-up and personal look at their Senators and Representatives in action.
In one Senate office, Debbie Robins, Century Distributors, and David Han, Triple C Wholesalers, met with a senior legislative aide to Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) when, suddenly, Sen. Cardin appeared in the window of the conference room and, recognizing his constituents, he stepped in to say hello. One thing led to another and the AWMA group soon found themselves ushered in to Sen. Cardin’s office for a quick review of our industry issues. Having met last year with then-Representative Cardin on the House side of the Hill, David Han congratulated the newly elected Senator. "Yes, it’s good to be the Senator!" smiled Sen. Cardin before rushing off to yet another hearing on what would become Thursday’s landmark deal on immigration reform.
Following a full day with eight congressional appointments, returning Day on the Hill participant David Han wrote AWMA, "I thank you for making all the arrangements for us to make contacts with Senators, Congressmen and their staffers . . . It is a good effort by all of us in the tobacco industry . . . Thanks and keep up the good work."
Last November’s tidal wave of electoral change was obvious as several AWMA members met with first term congressmen swept into office. Newly elected Rep. John Yarmuth (D-KY) spoke with Kathy Trompeter, John F. Trompeter Company, and Charlie Casper, Mydad, Inc., and learned a great deal from their session.
Recently elected Rep. Zack Space (D-OH), in a meeting with Chad Gummer, Gummer Wholesale, asked probing questions about AWMA’s tobacco-related business concerns. As often occurs in these meetings, the congressman and Chad talked about things happening back home, people they know in common, and so on. It turns out that the two men share an appreciation for fine cigars and fishing. Chad shared some fish tales from his latest Costa Rican fishing trip and Rep. Space had a few stories of his own to add. Not surprisingly, given the frantic schedule on Capitol Hill last Thursday, a congressional aide soon interrupted the new friends and whisked the congressman away for a committee meeting.
