SERGIO BUSTOS
Gannett News Service

WASHINGTON - Federal officials should issue short-term work visas to a limited number of Mexican immigrants before allowing employers in the United States to hire tens of thousands of temporary foreign workers, top U.S. and Mexican leaders recommended yesterday.
The government is simply not capable of managing a major guest-worker program at this time and attempting to do so would be "a recipe for failure," says a report issued by the U.S.-Mexico Binational Council.

Members of the council, an influential force in U.S. policy toward Mexico, cite "serious shortcomings" in the way federal officials run the H-2A and H-2B temporary worker programs. About 16,000 agricultural workers are admitted into the country each year under the H-2A program, and about 87,000 seasonal workers are given H-2B visas.

The two programs are small in comparison to proposals by President Bush and congressional lawmakers that call for the country to admit at least 500,000 foreigners as temporary workers, says the council's report.

The council's report is being forwarded to Bush administration officials and members of Congress.

Bush and several lawmakers are pushing Congress to approve a guest-worker program as a way to reduce the country's high number of illegal immigrants.

Eight million to 10 million immigrants live here illegally, according to the latest federal government estimates. Two-thirds come from Mexico.

Many Republicans charge that current proposals would reward immigrants who broke the law. They vow to oppose any legislation that would grant these immigrants amnesty.

Many Democrats, meanwhile, oppose legislation that would deny illegal immigrants the chance to earn permanent legal status.

Rep. Jim Kolbe, R-Ariz., a council member and co-sponsor of a proposed guest-worker bill, is discouraged by the lack of action in Congress but predicts that such legislation may get more attention after this year's presidential contest.

"What we've been doing over the last several years isn't working," he said. "It's de facto amnesty."

Retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey, the nation's drug czar during the Clinton administration and a council member, echoed Kolbe's remarks. He said U.S. and Mexican officials must work together to solve the illegal immigration problem.

"The current situation is nonsense," he said. "You can't solve the illegal immigration problem with fences and police."