Date: 2015-03-04
Speaker: WATSON COLEMAN (democrat)
Chamber: H

Thank you very much. I am very grateful to my colleague. the gentleman from Arizona. for sharing his vast knowledge. experience. and dedication to such an important issue. Mr. Speaker. I am relatively new to this Chamber. but I must tell you that. as I have been working here and observing. I am always reminded of the fact that this is a nation of immigrants. This is a nation that was conceived of by immigrants. It was created by immigrants. It was made great by immigrants because all of our Founding Fathers who are responsible for the way this country operates and the way we operate this democracy came to this land from another land. According to our polling that has been released by the Public Religion Research Institute in February. 77 percent of the country supports either a pathway to citizenship or permanent legal residency for undocumented immigrants. Only 19 percent want to enforce deportation. Citizenship is also favored over deportation in every single solitary State in this Nation. frequently by very wide margins. In the last Congress. as my colleague from Arizona noted. the Democraticled Senate passed legislation that would have provided that pathway for 11 million immigrants seeking the American Dream but currently living in the shadows. That bill also would have strengthened border security. something I hear my Republican colleagues argue about quite frequently. That measure passed with significant Republican support. 6832 votes. yet our Speaker. Speaker BOEHNER. declared that that bill was dead on arrival in the House. It is not just my constituents. it is not just Democrats that know it is time for a change on immigration. The American people are quickly reaching consensus that the American Dream should not be withheld and that there is nothing to fear from those who are seeking it. The American people are beginning to understand that the absolutely deplorable rhetoric used to keep immigrants in the shadows is just that. rhetoric. The American people are starting to agree that our legacy as a nation of immigrants means that offering the same opportunities to new generations should be the order of the day. Mr. Speaker. I am calling on my Republican colleagues right now to open the discussion on real immigration reform. This. as I said. is a nation of immigrants. built by people who came from different worlds. seeking opportunities to change their futures. So we should be having a conversation about how we honor that legacy and protect the promise of the American Dream for a new generation that is ready to work hard. play by the rules. and seize it. This is not a nation that will thrive by keeping our immigrants in the shadows. This is a nation right now that is just gaining traction and economic growth. with plenty of people still looking for employment and a government too burdened by austerity measures to provide any relief. So we should be having a conversation about the economic benefits of comprehensive immigration reform and the extraordinary impact it would have on job creation and innovation. It is not just the right thing to do. it is the fiscally right thing to do. it is a morally right thing to do. and it is a timely thing to do. We need to let go of our excuses and end the scare tactics. Lets get together and pass comprehensive immigration reform right now. Mr. Speaker. I yield back the balance of my time.