Thursday, September 21, 2006

New Ford Ad Focuses On Holding Employers Accountable For Hiring Illegal Workers

The campaign of U.S. Senate nominee Harold Ford Jr. today launches an ad focusing on the differences between Ford and opponent Bob Corker on the immigration issue.

Entitled “Action,” the 30-second spot illustrates how Ford believes employers breaking the law by hiring illegal workers must be held accountable, while a Corker worksite was raided for using illegal labor. The ad is airing on broadcast and cable tv in all Tennessee media markets. It is a response clarifying Corker’s lying in ads about Ford’s record on the issue.

Based on news accounts and official Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) documents from the 1988 account of Corker’s employment of illegal workers on a Memphis construction site, the ad states that while Corker “likes to talk tough about illegal immigration,” he fails to tell Tennesseans about the INS action involving his company. The INS notified Corker’s company twice that there were reports of illegals on the worksite, but Corker and his company officials did nothing about it, documents show. The INS then raided the site, arresting four illegal workers.

“What Bob Corker doesn’t tell you is when he was building these apartments, the INS raided his worksite, found illegals working there, and arrested them. He look the other way for cheap labor and we’re paying the price,” the ad states.

On camera, Ford states, “To get control of our borders, we’ve got to get tough on illegals. Let’s also get tough on employers who break the law. Bob Corker disagrees.”

Besides having been investigated and raided by the INS for illegal workers, Corker has repeatedly said that he does not believe employers should be held accountable.