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TÁNAISTE AND MINISTER for Foreign Affairs Eamon Gilmore has been telephoning senior US politicians to push hard for a deal on illegal Irish migrants in America.
Gilmore said the signs that both the Republican and Democratic parties support some kind of immigration reform, coupled with several speeches by Obama on the issue, are “encouraging” – but that no firm proposals have yet been put forward.
The Government plans to use St Patrick’s Day visits by TDs travelling abroad to increase pressure for a deal by meeting with key politicians and lobby groups.
Although the exact figure is unknown, there are believed to be up to 50,000 Irish people living and working illegally in the United States without a visa, meaning they cannot hold documentation or return to the country if they leave.
A deal offering some kind of path to legalisation of their status for the tens of thousands of undocumented immigrants has become more likely in recent weeks after Barack Obama used his inauguration speech to signal that immigration reform was a priority for his second term. Discussions are on going in the US Senate and House of Representatives.
Former US presidential candidate John McCain, who is part of a bipartisan group of politicians spearheading the effort to reform America’s complex immigration laws, is due to meet with President Obama on Tuesday and has said he is “guardedly optimistic” that there could be a deal by the end of March.
There are an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States.
Responding to a question in the Dáil, Eamon Gilmore said undocumented Irish workers will be a “critical element of the Government’s engagement with the US authorities, including over the forthcoming St Patrick’s Day period”.
My programme and that of other members of the Government during that period… will include discussions with key political figures on immigration and with the Irish community groups that provide assistance to the undocumented.
“I am currently engaged in a round of telephone discussions with key US Senators to discuss prospects for progress and to underline our ongoing interest in the issue,” he said.
The Tánaiste raised the issue with Hillary Clinton during her visit to Ireland in December in one of her last trips as Secretary of State.
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My band Cruachan made it to the last ten this year, so close to making the final six for the televised final. A totally different song than normal – celtic folk mixed with metal, thin lizzy meets horslips. Anyway, we’ll release our submission ‘The Blacksmith’ as a standalone single on the same day as Irelands semi final so plz check that out and see what you think
@Keith Fay: if ye make it it’ll be the first good act since Lordi.
@Kieran Fitzgerald: Cheers Kieran, we’ll most likely try again for next year. Ireland needs to stop sending pop!
@Keith Fay: it’d be fine if it was good pop but the best we can do some some lad who can do the Louis Walsh dance move. A.K.A Standing up off a stool on a key change.
And who selects the songs presented on the late late show? Or is it who you know?……
@Rebecca Owens: this is what I was told – “We had a judging panel of over 30 Radio, TV and Entertainment professionals as well as Eurovision fans shortlisting the songs”
@Keith Fay: lol.. Rubbish.. Johnny Rotten!! (English Man). All candidates are politically / agenda picked.
I watch the Eurovision but often it feels like the judges don’t. It feels like they are still locked in the past with no idea of what actually succeeds in the Eurovision nowadays. I mean the audience of Eurovision are hardly diehard fans of the Late Late show way of selecting singers. Johnny Rotten will probably go in purely for the novelty factor.
Yes but I can’t watch Turbity or Marty Whelan, so that rules out Eurosong tonight or Eurovision on RTE.
I watch all kinds of everything
nul points – nein danke
50% polled have no interest, yet the viewing figures every year are huge.
Funny that.
@Eamonn Duggan: Viewing figures are rigged.
@Roger Bond: or more simply, the Journal commenters are not representative of the general population.
@Eamonn Duggan: A quick Google search tells me that, at 314,000 viewers, it wasn’t even in the top 50….
Listened to the songs, i cannot see any going through never mind winning. The competition should be more open to the public. Like it was when it started. A knock out competition
I do watch it, it’s actually quite good.
The bloc vote argument and the naff song argument come from people who haven’t watched the contest in years.
The quality has improved songwise, the winners are not all eastern bloc, recent winners: Netherlands, Italy, Portugal, Sweden (twice), Austria, Denmark.
I do think RTÉ needs to make more of an effort when you see what the rest of Europe brings each year. We won’t be holding that record for much longer and when that happens, which it will, we won’t be able to tug at the Johnny Logan nostalgia strings any longer. Change if approach is needed now.
Look at United Kingdom, coming second last year, would have won only for Ukraine, however end up hosting in Liverpool this year, so they may as well have won the thing last year.
Every mention of John Lydon and P. I. L. has been removed!!! Why??
@sean o’dhubhghaill: Cause the system don’t like it.
@Keth Warsaw: It’s a great rock ‘n roll swindle if you ask me.
@sean o’dhubhghaill: And tonight….never mind the bolox.
@Keth Warsaw: bollix
Yes, taking a shot everytime Marty makes a patronising remark about one of the other countries.
The Eurovision became a complete joke show when those Eastern European countries came onboard.
@Roger Bond: So you’d kick out all the countries east of Berlin?
junket for some who look forward to the trip yearly and the taxpayers being fleeced to pay for such trips , RTE. And their Mafia and political connections wast of taxoayers money as some sections of society go hungry and have to live in the cold homes if they have one to live in .
Has become too big. Bring back four singers and frocks, and a real connection. Don’t need to watch pornstars throwing out noise.
…Never gonna happen.
Not since My Lovely Horse.
Let JR represent Ireland. We have been too anodyne fit too long.
Eurovision peaked in 2006.
@Kieran Fitzgerald: 1970 s
I did and it was cringeworthy
Amateur hour
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