U.S. Immigration Reform Political Action Committee
2002 Candidate Survey

USIRP asked candidates for federal office to respond to ten questions about their stances on immigration-related issues. Candidates recieved up to ten points for each answer, for a maximum of 100 points. Lists of candidates were taken from the web sites of the Democratic and Republican comgressional campaign committees (DCCC and NRCC), plus any third-party candidates we had knowledge of. Below are the questions from the USIRP survey.

(Click here for the respondents' scores.)
(Click here for a list of all congressional candidates, including USIRP's endorsements.)

1. Which statement about a proposed amnesty (legalization program) for illegal aliens comes closest to your view?
(a) ___ I oppose amnesty for illegal aliens because it is unfair to legal immigrants who have obeyed the law, rewards people who knowingly broke the law, and sends a message that is certain to increase illegal immigration in the future.
(b) ___ I favor amnesty for illegal aliens because most are hard working, tax paying individuals who do jobs Americans won't do and they are essential to our economy. Furthermore, they are here and there is no other practical way to protect their rights.
(c) ___ I favor some form of guest worker program that would give limited rights to illegal aliens without allowing them to become citizens or bring in other family relatives.
(d) ___ None of the above.

2. Do you think that illegal aliens should be allowed to pay in-state tuition to attend state supported colleges and universities?
(a)___Yes
(b)___ No
(c)___ Not sure, no opinion

3. Which statement about enforcing our laws against illegal immigration comes closest to your views?
(a)___Our immigration laws should be vigorously enforced both at the border and in the interior of the country. When apprehended, illegal aliens should be held for deportation.
(b)___We should concentrate our immigration law enforcement effort and resources on our border and not waste much effort on interior enforcement which is disruptive to local businesses.
(c)___Except for screening out potential terrorists, we shouldn't put a high priority on enforcing our immigration laws either at the border or in the interior of the country.

4. Do you think the State Department should use its power to suspend the visa privileges of countries that refuse to accept the return of their nationals who are being deported?
(a)___Yes
(b)___No
(c)___Not sure, no opinion.

5. Do you think the U.S. should stop granting automatic citizenship to the children of illegal aliens who are born on U.S. soil?
(a) ___Yes
(b) ___No
(c) ___Not sure, no opinion

6. Will you, if elected/re-elected, pledge your word not to vote for any legalization program, however characterized, that would give an advantage to illegal aliens over those that have respected and obeyed our laws? ("The No Amnesty Pledge")
(a)___Yes
(b)___ No B. Legal Immigration Reform

7. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that immigration at current levels will cause U.S. population to exceed 400 million by 2050 and possibly reach one billion by 2100. Which statement about these projections comes closest to your views?
(a)___ The U.S. is a nation of immigrants. Furthermore it is a large country with a lot of land and unused resources and can find ways to accommodate a population that large.
(b)___ The U.S. is not the unsettled frontier of 150 years ago. We struggle already with growing scarcities of energy, water, and other resources as well as problems like traffic congestion and urban sprawl. Part of any realistic solution must be to limit immigration.
(c)___ These are just projections that we shouldn't worry about too much now. New technologies will come along to take care of these problems as they arise. The last thing we should do is to limit our growth by cutting back on immigration.

8. Would you favor reforming the visa preference system to eliminate the visa preferences for non-nuclear family relatives such as brothers, sisters, and parents of legal immigrants that has led to the phenomenon known as "chain migration?"
(a)___ Yes
(b)___ No
(c)___ Not sure, no opinion

9. If elected/re-elected, will you vote to reduce or end the temporary visa program known as H-1b which makes visas available for employers to bring in as many as 200,000 foreign workers annually to fill U.S. jobs?
(a) ___Yes
(b) ___No
(c)___ Not sure, no opinion

10. If elected/re-elected, will you join (or remain a member) of the Congressional Immigration Reform Caucus?
(a) ___Yes
(b) ___No
(c) ___ Not sure.
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