Immigration reform heats up in Congress and the news

Immigration issues are back in the news:

In Colorado, a crackdown on immigrants has led to a ramp-up on the use of prison labor.

And the New York Times reminds us that we indeed have something to fear in reconsiderations of a guestworker program in the U.S. Could we just be goin' globile with a modern Bracero?

And the Public Policy Institute of California reports that new immigrants are driving salaries up in that immigrant-rich state.

Meanwhile in Washington, the USCCB once again throws its considerable weight behind a comprehensive reform package that will include some kind of normalization of status for America's undocumented people:

"'Without the inclusion of a path to citizenship in a legalization program, you are essentially creating a permanent underclass in our country,'" said Bishop Gerald Barnes of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Migration."

Also, an update: labor's Mr. Check-Off proposal treks through the House but enters murkier space in the Senate.