Immigration again

As I predicted, Frist has said he'll oppose the McCain/Kennedy solution to illegal immigration. But this argument I fail to understand:

Frist rejected the legalization process -- put forward by the Senate Judiciary Committee -- for more than 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States, a plan he said "most Americans would see as amnesty."

"I disagree with this approach, not just as a matter of principle, but because granting amnesty now will only encourage future and further disrespect for the law," the Tennessee Republican said on the Senate floor.

Actually, the bill punishes those who have entered the country illegally already. It levies heavy fines and forces them to pay back taxes as well.

But Frist's argument bothers me because he's partly in charge of making the laws that are meant to discourage illegal immigration. So if he passes a tough but fair law, even one with the Kennedy/McCain legalization process, he can prevent his nightmare scenario from going down. If the legalization aspect was the only part of the law being passed, then certainly you'd see more immigrants entering the country hoping for a break. But harsher penalties and even better enforcement would go a long way to discourage future in flow.

Now, I still think tougher, enforceable immigration laws that will actually work are a pipe dream anyway. And this is Republicans in the Senate now spinning their wheels on an issue they thought would be quick and easy and give their base a boost. In the end, if may just push Hispanic voters further away.

*UPDATE* This AP headline is just idiotic - "Senate GOP Debates if Bill Equals Amnesty". I guess they can debate all they want, but the answer is "no."