Speech #1090100592

Speaker. President John F. Kennedy. himself the grandson of Irish immigrants. summed up this blend of the old and the new when he called America a society of immigrants. each of whom had begun life anew on an equal footing. This is the secret of America. a Nation of people with a fresh memory of old traditions who dare to explore new frontiers. He further said: Everywhere immigrants have enriched and strengthened the fabric of American life. And then Franklin Delano Roosevelt reminded us. remember. remember always. that all of us are descended from immigrants. I had hoped as we began our journey on a very important task. as reflected in the work we have done over the last 2 days. on border security and immigration reform. that we would have returned to our values. recognizing that this Nation is a Nation of immigrants as well as a Nation of laws. I would have hoped that we would have constructed a piece of legislation that garnered the very essence of the instructions of the 9/11 Commission. that we would have taken this time to move from the Ds and Fs of which this Nation was graded some 10 days by the 9/11 Commission and actually Incurred the appreciation of the Nation by doing real border security. real border enforcement and real immigration reform. But. unfortunately. the legislative initiative that has just passed. the Border Protection Act. really does not answer the question of the need for immigration reform. In fact. unlike the words of President John F. Kennedy where we recognize that immigration can enrich this country and where we recognize the contributions of immigrants. we seek now to shut the door for a pathway of earned access to legalization. We ignore the fact that immigrants who are working in a variety of jobs have homes and pay taxes. have children in school. and have the hopes and dreams of the immigrants of yesteryear. I think it is important that we turn back the clock and start immigration reform again. that we remember that we cannot demonize or make criminal every single undocumented immigrant. that we must provide our border patrol resources what they need. the helicopters. power boats. laptop computers. night goggles in order to enforce the border. We must enforce the laws that are already on the books. For example. it is a criminal act to enter the country without inspection. We have to have the resources to enforce those laws. But it does not make sense to deny those individuals within our borders due process. And then I would have hoped that a real immigration reform bill would have had a singular piece of protecting American jobs. realizing that the heart of this countrys economy and the heart of America is in Americas working people. And we could have taken this particular legislation and provided. as the Save America Comprehensive Legislation H.R. 2092. a vehicle to garner the fees that are paid by immigrants and invest them in the educational training of America and the protecting of American jobs and the securing of American jobs. I believe there should be employer sanctions. but there cannot be effective employer sanctions unless we develop a singular database that is integrated. consistent and accurate. Many of the amendments would suggest that an employer verify who he or she hired.