President Barack Obama on Tuesday told an enthusiastic crowd in Nevada that the country finally seems ready to undertake a comprehensive immigration overhaul, and he made an emotional appeal to get it done quickly.
Obama said lawmakers and the country need to seize the moment.
“We can’t afford to allow immigration reform to be bogged down in an endless debate. ... If Congress is unable to move forward in a timely fashion, I will send up a bill based on my proposal and insist that they vote on it right away.”
The president unveiled his own principles for immigration reform, which generally mirror his earlier efforts. But notably, his proposals do not include the Senate group’s compromise of tying improved border enforcement to citizenship for illegal immigrants.
Obama said it must be clear at the outset “that there is a pathway to citizenship” for comprehensive reform to work. He said the path would not be easy — illegal immigrants would have to learn English and go to the back of the line to become citizens, Obama said. “It won’t be a quick process, but it will be a fair process,” he said.
Obama said his vision also includes tougher penalties on employers who break immigration laws as well as improved checks to make sure workers are legal. And Obama said the legal immigration system needs an overhaul for the 21st century, with a new ability for employers to bring or retain talented immigrants and an end to citizens having to wait years before they can bring their family members to the United States. All of those points were also included in the Senate group’s outline.
The president said the larger debate was an important and emotional one — that there are few things more important to the United States as a society than who is allowed to come and call themselves Americans.
“The question now is simple, do we have the resolve as a people, as a country, as a government to finally put this issue behind us? I believe that we do,” he said.
But he warned that the debate has often become about “us vs. them.”
“A lot of folks forget that most of us used to be them,” Obama said, saying that with the exception of Native Americans, everyone’s ancestors came over as immigrants.
“Remember that this is not just about policy, this is about people. ... This is about men and women ... who want nothing more than to earn their way into this country.”
Obama’s speech brought concern from some Republicans that the White House would push for a package too liberal to garner their support, but Democrats and other allies praised him for pushing a broad package on the stump while giving Congress time to hash out many of the details.
Rep. Bill Cassidy has his blood drawn by Alesha Barbour during a free hepatitis screening in the Rayburn House Office Building hosted by the Congressional Viral Hepatitis Caucus to recognize "National Viral Hepatitis Testing Day."
Roll Call has launched a new feature, Hill Navigator, to advise congressional staffers and would-be staffers on how to manage workplace issues on Capitol Hill. Please send us your questions — anything from office etiquette, to handling awkward moments, to what happens when the work life gets too personal. Submissions will be treated anonymously.
