Speech #1130121427

My hope was and still is that we have legislation along the lines of what was approved by the Senate. That legislation was far from perfect. In my view. it was way short of the ideal immigration reform I would favor. but the good cannot be the enemy of the perfect and the perfect cannot be the enemy of the good. What we need now is a practical approach to this problem through legislation. The House refused to take up the Senate bill. It didnt even consider it and never voted on it. The President has a responsibility. and his job is to take actions that are within his legal authority to address a system that is broken and takes a toll on human lives that is intolerable. It threatens to divide families. to put people out of worknot just undocumented immigrants out of work but citizens of this country because they work for businesses that are owned and operated by those immigrants who might be deported. I have seen that firsthand in Connecticut. and I know it is true around the country. This measure is not only good for human lives. it is good for our economy. It is essential to make sure our immigration systema broken. failed systemis at least prepared in the short term while we work toward legislation that is absolutely necessary to comprehensively revise and reform that system. Every day that the Federal Government fails to act on immigration reform. people in this country are forced to live in fear and the anxiety and apprehension that children suffer when they are afraid they will lose their parents and siblings. Connecticut citizens live in fear of losing their neighbors and their employers. their congregates in church. and members of their immediate and extended families. Millions of immigrants who have lived in this country for years5 or 10 years or longerand are working hard. paying taxes. abiding by the law. and contributing and giving back to their communities are forced to live in fear that they will have to leave everything they have worked so hard to build and everything that means so much to themtheir families. their homes. and the country they have come to love. They appreciate the freedoms of this country and the opportunities it offers in ways we routinely take for granted. For them. this country is a beacon of hope and opportunity which they appreciate so deeply and fervently that they are willing to lay down their lives for it and. in fact. sometimes do as members of our armed services. The lack of action on immigration reform hurts everyone. When businesses employ workers under the table. our economy and our Nation are deprived of their taxes. They are often ducking regulations and taxes. which in turn drives down wages for every working American. Immigrants should be able to come out of the shadows not just for their sake but for the Nations sake. They are a resource that can be used so much more fully to the benefit of our Nation. When they come out of the shadows. they should be forced to undergo background checks. obtain work permits and proof that they are abiding by the law. That is necessary to show they are not a threat to public safety. When immigrants live in fear. law enforcement cant know who lives in the communities they police. Immigrants who live in fear are simply not going to be as willing to report individuals living near them and represent a real threat to public safety because they feel uncomfortable reporting crimes and cooperating with authority when they feel they may then be the object of enforcement. Getting more people who are already living in this country into the system will allow law enforcement to go after the truly bad actorsserious criminals. serious national security threats. and people who seriously should not be in this country. As the American people wait for legislative action and wait for the House to act on the Senate bill and perhaps wait on the Senate to act again.