Speech #1090099934

I had intended to stay out of this debate. but the tone of the debate has made me angry. It never ceases to amaze me how many men will seize any opportunity to kick people when they are down. Illegal immigrants have no legal rights in this country. 0I 1130 They have no economic power. They have no political leverage. But. if they did. this bill would not be on the floor today. Sure. we are a Nation of laws. but we are also a Nation of values and ideals. and it is those values and ideals that bond us together as a society and an economy. Every single one of us. and I can say that because there are no Native Americans in this body. every single one of us are the children of immigrants. and whether they were legal or illegal was largely due to the accident of their birth. what country they were born in. what visa and immigration quotas applied and. the economic status of the parents to whom they were born. There is no sector of this economy that works harder for less compensation than undocumented aliens. There is no single group of workers that believe more in the American ideal than the people that we want to isolate and disown and marginalize today. They are here because they were willing to risk everything to forge a better future for their children. and that is what makes America great. because they believe in the American ideal: they believe that if they work hard enough. even though they will not be paid as much compensation as many of the people working beside them. but if they work hard enough. their children will have a better future. and that is why they are here.