Immigration reform that was put on hold after the 9-11 terror attacks must be a priority when Congress reconvenes next week, Sen. John McCain said yesterday.

While national security remains a crucial concern in light of the war on terror, lawmakers should pass a guest-worker program that includes amnesty for some illegal workers now in the United States, the Arizona Republican said during a news conference in his Tucson office.

"I believe we can pursue the security programs and at the same time set up a system where people can come here and work on a temporary basis. I think we can set up a program where amnesty is extended to a certain number of people who are eligible and at the same time make sure that we have some control over people who come in and out of this country," he said.

Immigration reform talks between President Bush and Mexican President Vicente Fox ended abruptly when terrorists attacked the World Trade Center and Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001. But the relentless wave of illegal immigrants risking their lives to find work in America dictate that Congress address the problem soon, McCain said.

"There are jobs that American workers simply won't do," McCain said. "As long as there's a demand for workers, workers are going to come across."..

An amnesty program is vital to any immigration legislation that includes a guest-worker program, he said.

"Amnesty has to be an important part because there are people who have lived in this country for 20, 30 or 40 years, who have raised children here and pay taxes here and are not citizens. That has to be a component of it," he said. "How can we have a temporary worker program if we're not allowing people who have been here for 30 years to hold jobs here?"

The fact that the Fox administration opposed the U.S. military action in Iraq cannot be allowed impede negotiations, McCain said.

"I am confident President Bush, former governor of a border state, understands the absolute importance of our relationship with Mexico and will move forward as soon as possible, especially on these issues of border security and immigration," he said.

Immigration law is likely to open the door for a national identification system, he said.

"At some point in history we are going to have a national I.D.," he said. "But the first phase of it has got to be for people who are not citizens, so we can identify them and know who is going in and out of the country."

Another border security measure is likely to be the use of unmanned aerial surveillance vehicles, commonly called drones.

"It's one of the important technological tools we have. We're never going to have enough people to patrol that border. UAVs do a good job," he said. "We have an obligation to secure our borders. There are too many indications of bad people with bad intentions who are contemplating or coming across our border."

McCain credits U.S. Rep. Jim Kolbe, a Tucson Republican, for spearheading the Arizona effort to create a guest-worker program.