The Senate has killed a proposal by Virginia Democratic Senator Jim Webb that would have allowed only those who had been in the country for at least four years to gain lawful status.

The bill would have made anyone here by January First of this year eligible for legalization.

Senators voted 79-to-18 against the bill, which Webb had said would raise the public's comfort level with granting lawful status to illegal immigrants.

Also defeated Wednesday was a Republican proposal to require all adult illegal immigrants to return home temporarily in order to qualify for permanent lawful status in this country.

Both amendments were designed to respond to conservatives who decry President Bush's immigration bill as a form of amnesty.