Senator Jokes About House Painter

Senator Jokes About House Painter

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

By MARY CLARE JALONICK, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTONRepublican Sen. Conrad Burns, whose re-election campaign is pressing for tighterimmigration controls, referred to his house painter as"a nice little Guatemalan man"and suggestedthat worker as well as employees of a roofing company he hired might be in the country illegally.

"The other day, the little fella who does our maintenance work around the house, he's fromGuatemala, and I said,'Could I see your green card?'"Burns said at a June meeting recorded byDemocrats."And Hugo says,'No.'I said,'Oh, gosh.'"

Burns spokesman Jason Klindt said the worker, Hugo Reyes, is legally in the United States, owns apainting company and the senator"never had any doubt"that Reyes is a legal resident.

"He was telling an anecdotal story about a time he took the extra step to make sure a worker waslegal,"Klindt said. He added that Burns'description of Reyes as"little"was nothing more than areference to his stature. He is 5 feet 3.

Burns, who voted against a Senate bill this year that would have offered millions of illegalimmigrants a chance at citizenship, also joked about the issue at a debate against his Democraticopponent, Jon.

Tester, earlier this year.

Burns said he was on the phone with his contractor when he saw an interview with an illegalimmigrant on television. The immigrant said he was a roofer and was headed north.

"So I told my roofer, you better go out and get your help,"Burns said."Or you won't get my houseroofed."

Burns'comments come on the heels of controversial remarks by Republican Sen. George Allen ofVirginia, who called a Democratic staffer of Indian descent"Macaca."Indian-American groups andothers criticized Allen for his racially insensitive comments after a video was posted on the Internet.

A staffer for Allen's opponent, Democrat James Webb, caught that incident on tape. Likewise,Montana Democrats have been filming Burns as he campaigns across the state.

In a video released by the Tester campaign this week, Burns is seen interrupting his own stumpspeech at a campaign event to take a cell phone call and then appears to speak to the painter.

"Hugo is a nice little Guatemalan man who is doing some painting for me ... in Virginia,"Burns toldthe audience, to laughter, after hanging up on the call."No, he's terrific, love him."

That event was Aug. 15, according to the Tester campaign. In audio tape from a June meeting also

released by the Democrats, Burns is heard recounting the conversation in which he asked Reyes forhis green card.

Matt McKenna, a spokesman for the Tester campaign, said that meeting was held at theheadquarters of Family Service Inc., a Billings, Mont., charity for low-income families. TheDemocrats'videographer, Kevin O'Brien, sat in on the meeting and recorded it.

Conservatives and advocates for stricter immigration control said Burns crossed a line with hiscomments, even if they were said in jest.

"A U.S. senator hiring illegal immigrants is not a joke,"said Michael Dougherty of The AmericanCause, a conservative group founded by Pat Buchanan that supports strict immigration controls."Hecould easily dispirit his voting base."

"If you have the very people who are responsible formaking the laws mocking them, it's a pretty good indicationof why we have 12 million people breaking the law,"said IraMehlman, a spokesman for Federation for AmericanImmigration Reform. An estimated 12 million illegalimmigrants live in the United States.

Efforts to reach Reyes were unsuccessful. Klindt said hehas been in the country for 30 years. He said theDemocrats are"desperate"to take the focus off other campaign issues.

Burns has used the issue of immigration in a campaign ad.

"Burns votes against amnesty,"the ad announcer says, referring to the Senate bill."It gives illegalsSocial Security and tuition with your taxes."

Burns, 71, has had to apologize in the past for controversial comments.

In July, he confronted members of a firefighting team at the Billings airport and told them they haddone a"piss-poor job,"according to a state report. The Hotshot crew had traveled 2,000 miles fromStaunton, Va., to help dig fire lines for about a week around a 143-square-mile wildfire east ofBillings.

The crew was awaiting flights home when Burns made his comments. The senator, who has a housein Billings, said he was expressing the frustration of ranchers who were critical of the way the firewas handled. He later apologized.

In 1999, Burns issued a written apology after referring to Arabs as"rag heads"during a speech whilecommenting on oil prices.

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