IMMIGRATION'S GREAT DIVIDE U.S.-BORN LATINOS LESS LENIENT ON POLICY THAN FOREIGN-BORN COUNTERPARTS.

Byline: Lisa Friedman Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON - U.S.-born Latinos are more likely than their foreign-born counterparts to consider illegal immigrants a drain on the economy, oppose giving them driver's licenses, and look less favorably on even legal immigration, a Pew Hispanic Center survey released Tuesday says.

At the same time, separate data released by the center showed that 40 percent of adults in Mexico say they would move to the United States immediately if they could and 20 percent said they would do so illegally.

Experts said the reports highlight the fact that Latinos are not monolithic in their views on immigration, and underscore the need for Congress to address U.S. immigration laws.

``The anti-immigration lobby and the pro-immigration lobby both have to tread very carefully when it comes to public opinion,'' said Michael Jones- Correa, an associate professor of government at Cornell University who specializes in immigration.

The national telephone survey of 1,001 Latinos - conducted June 14-27 - also found:

--80 percent of Latinos said immigrants strengthen the country. Within that group, however, more foreign-born supported that view (89 percent) than U.S.-born (65 percent).

--One-third of U.S.-born Latinos said illegal immigrants hurt the economy by driving down wages, while just 15 percent of foreign-born Latinos felt that way.

--Bans on driver's licenses for illegal immigrants were widely approved by U.S.-born Latinos (about 60 percent), while just 29 percent of foreign-born Latinos favored such restrictions.

Robert Suro, director of the Pew Hispanic Center, said the disparities also underscore the differences between most first-generation immigrants and their offspring.

``You move further from the immigrant experience. It's less in your life - it's in your parents' or your grandparents' life - so there's less of an immediate sympathy. It's a somewhat different world with different concerns,'' he said.

Jones-Correa called it ``a sign of incorporation, of assimilation,'' among U.S.-born Latinos. ``They're reflecting the kinds of views of American society more broadly.''

But noting that in a 2004 survey of all Americans only 45 percent reported a favorable view of immigrants, Suro said U.S.-born Latinos still have more positive outlooks than the general population.

``What you're seeing is an overall positive feeling, but it's not automatic and it's not universal,'' he said. ``These two important parts of Latino population are sort of going in opposite directions.''

Ira Mehlman, media director for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which advocates restrictions on all immigration and tougher measures to combat illegal immigration, said he isn't surprised by the differing generational attitudes.

``In general, most American-born citizens understand that mass immigration has an impact on their daily lives,'' he said. ``Probably Hispanic-Americans more so than most because more often illegal immigrants move into their neighborhoods.''

According to the survey, half of all Latinos surveyed said immigration levels should be kept as they are. About 27 percent of foreign-born Latinos advocated an increase in immigration levels while only 8 percent of U.S. born Latinos felt that way.

The survey had a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points.

Lisa Friedman, [phone]

lisa.friedman(at)langnews.com

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SOURCE: Pew Hispanic Center