Sen. Chuck Hagel pledged Saturday to renew his effort to open a pathway to legal residency for illegal immigrants living and working in the United States.

Hagel met in Omaha with Latino representatives and advocates for immigrants to hear their reaction to his plan.

“I heard some things I liked that will enhance the bills,” Hagel said in a telephone interview. 

“It was a very, very positive response,” the Republican senator said.

Milo Mumgaard, executive director of the Nebraska Appleseed Center, said Hagel’s comprehensive approach to immigration reform is “rather bold and actually representative of the view of Nebraskans.”

The feedback from participants at the private meeting at the Chicano Awareness Center in south Omaha was “very positive,” Mumgaard said.

Hagel, he said, “knows full-well there is a minority, negative, shrill crowd that will produce a blowback” of opposition to his plan, Mumgaard said.

“But this is Senator Hagel’s strength.  He thinks it’s the right thing to do and he’s going ahead with it even though he acknowledges the seal-the-borders, send-everyone-home crowd is a very loud minority.”

Hagel said his proposal to establish a set of conditions illegal immigrant workers must meet to earn legal status does not represent amnesty, as its opponents have charged.

“It is not amnesty,” he said.  “Amnesty comes with no conditions.  This is a process, a pathway for people to follow to work toward legal status.  And it is a very strong set of conditions.”

Included are residency and employment requirements that demonstrate workers and their families are part of the community, a record of law-abiding behavior and payment of taxes, demonstrated knowledge of English and payment of a fine.

“This is a family issue,” Mumgaard said.  “This helps reunify families.  It’s how to get these families to come out of the shadows (and) get straight with the law in a reasonable way.  I think that’s exactly what Nebraskans want.”

With immigrant workers a vital segment of the U.S. workforce and already engaged in their communities, Mumgaard said, “it’s not realistic to say ‘send them home’ or ‘deport them.’”

Hagel said his comprehensive approach, which will be introduced in the Senate as four bills on Tuesday, would strengthen border security.  It also provides for systematic admission of immigrant workers to meet U.S. workforce needs.

On Friday, Hagel conferred in Omaha with a variety of law enforcement officials.

“I wanted to reach out one last time to various communities of interest and responsibility” before completing and submitting the legislative package, he said.

As a result of what he heard, Hagel said, “I will add to the bills.”

But, he said, he’ll “not take anything out” of the plan he originally proposed last year.

Mumgaard said the discussion at Hagel’s meeting with about 15 invited participants was “obviously an endorsement of him taking the lead.

“So, let’s go,” Mumgaard said.  “Nebraskans want reform.  People want the system repaired.  Let’s get to it.”

Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson has proposed legislation to strengthen border security to stem the flow of illegal immigrants into the country, but he has declined to say how he would handle illegal immigrants already living and working in the United States.

Republican Rep. Tom Osborne has unveiled his own proposal creating a guest-worker plan that would require illegal immigrants to return to their native country before being issued renewable work visas. 

Reach Don Walton at 473-7248 or at dwalton@journalstar.com