31.   Shortly thereafter, four members of Congress stepped forward to say that they had hired undocumented immigrants.

32.   Simpson tried to persuade his colleagues that the tougher penalties would only apply to employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants and not to employers who make an honest mistake.

33.   Some of these companies, in turn, hire immigrants, reportedly illegal as well as legal.

34.   The aim is usually to hire legal immigrants.

35.   The agency also told inspectors to focus on employers who hire smuggled immigrants or abuse their workers.

36.   The death rate for Hispanics in construction, an industry that has hired many immigrants in recent years, is even higher, occupational experts say.

37.   The EEOC said employers that knowingly hire illegal immigrants should not then be free to discriminate against them or otherwise exploit them.

38.   The INS said Wilson is not a focus of the inquiry since it was not illegal to hire an immigrant at the time.

39.   The new immigration law raised fines for employers who hire illegal immigrants, but Bersin said current law is not enough.

40.   The president also has called for a crackdown on employers who hire illegal immigrants.