(Washington, D.C.) – U.S. Sen. David Vitter today made the following comments after the U.S. Senate defeated the DREAM Act, legislation that would have provided a powerful incentive for more illegal immigration by granting amnesty to millions of illegal aliens who entered the U.S. as minors and met loosely defined “educational requirements.”

“I am extremely pleased that the U.S. Senate has once again rejected the illegal alien student bailout known as the DREAM Act,” said Vitter. “The American people have made it very clear that they favor border enforcement over policies that encourage lawlessness, and today’s bipartisan vote reaffirms what I have long argued - the American people will not tolerate amnesty in any form.

“In these difficult economic times, when unemployment rates are on the rise and government spending is unsustainable, the last thing legal tax-paying American citizens need is to see their hard-earned money used to finance the education of illegal aliens. Amnesty and economic incentives only exacerbate the problem of illegal immigration, and despite the efforts of liberals to push it yet again, I am pleased that we were once again able to defeat this irresponsible legislation,” said Vitter.

Vitter, who serves as the chairman of the Senate Border Security Caucus, spoke on the U.S. Senate floor about the DREAM Act immediately before the vote (view video of the speech here).

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