Speech #1090100508

Chairman. I rise in opposition to H.R. 4437. Immigrantswho are likely counted among the families of most members of this bodywork. pay taxes. serve in our military. and contribute in a resoundingly positive way. And our burdensome. inefficient immigration system is not working for immigrants and it is not working for our country. Unfortunately. this bill lets down immigrants. those who depend on them. and our Nation on the whole. There is a lot that is troubling in this bill. but also troubling is what is not in this bill. Real immigration reform and security improvements cannot end with a discussion on enforcement anymore than you can make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich without peanut butter. Immigration is about so much more. Immigration is also about bringing families together. and supplying a pathway to citizenship for those who come here and contribute. Moreover. it is foolish to pretend that we have somehow solved our immigration or security concerns by simply making it harder for people to come or stay here. That is simply increasing the incentive for immigrants to immigrate. live and work in the shadows. And that is a loss for immigrants. their families. society. and national security. Make no mistakeour immigration system needs reform. And it is appropriate to discuss how to best enforce our laws and secure our borders. Certainly none of my constituents in New York City are interested in making things easier on terrorists who use our immigration system to harm America. But lets make sure the enforcement tactics were talking about make sense. And lets make sure our tactics actually make us safer. And lets make sure that immigration reform does not end with enforcement. Because at the end of the day. immigration is too important to just take the most simplistic response and label it a solution. Fortunately. there is a better billa bipartisan bill offered by Congressmen KOLBE. FLAKE. and GUTIERREZ. A bill that reduces immigration backlogs and helps family reunification. A bill that recognizes that comprehensive immigration reformas opposed to strictly discussing enforcementis the only way to protect both the security and the ideals of the U.S. And this is certainly not that bill.