Most state voters back legalizing immigrants

This survey has about the same results as all the other recent polls. People want fair treatment for the people here illegally. DP

BY ALFONSO CHARDY

miamiherald.com: Three in five likely Florida voters say they back legalizing millions of undocumented immigrants largely along the lines of a controversial measure now stalled in the U.S. Senate.

The findings of the Zogby International statewide poll, conducted for The Miami Herald and WFOR-CBS4 in association with The Palm Beach Post and WPEC-CBS 12, mirror other polls' national results. The Senate compromise measure crashed into a wall of opposition raised by liberals and conservatives who dislike parts of the bipartisan bill for different reasons.

The poll's findings come as President Bush scrambles to try to get the support of Republican senators who view the measure as undeserved amnesty for the nation's estimated 12 million illegal immigrants. On Tuesday, Bush will meet with conservative Republican senators in an attempt to persuade them that the bill is tough on border enforcement and far from amnesty. It would extract heavy fines and long waits for immigrants to legalize their status.

Some of those requirements -- among them fines of $5,000 and a proposed point system that puts the nation's employment needs above family unification for immigrants -- are opposed by Democrats, who say the fines are too hefty and the waits too long.

In Florida, however, there's strong support for the Senate bill from voters of every political persuasion, race and ethnic group.

John Zogby, president of Zogby International, joked that Florida is not a ''Lou Dobbsian state'' -- a reference to CNN host Lou Dobbs, who has emerged as a leading opponent of illegal immigration.
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