WASHINGTON —  President Bush told a Hispanic audience that mass deportation is not the solution to illegal immigration.

He declared, "You can't kick 12 million people out of your country."

The president's remarks came at a White House observance of Hispanic Heritage Month.

It also came two days after Bush signed a measure that calls for building up to 700 miles of new fencing along America's southern border.

Bush maintains enforcement alone won't solve the immigration problem — only a comprehensive plan that includes a guest worker plan. However, conservative Republicans thwarted what they see as a thinly disguised amnesty.