I want to see us get this finished this year. I want to see a
bipartisan agreement. I came to the floor earlier and listened to the speeches of many of
my colleagues--one from North Carolina and another from Oklahoma, one
from the State of Texas and another from the State of Arkansas--and
each one of them said there are lots of things we need to do to fix our
immigration system. I couldn't agree more. I was on the task force--the Gang of 8 they called it--that came up
with a comprehensive immigration reform. It
took us months to do it, but we did it. We did everything we could
think of within the four corners of immigration reform. We passed it on
the floor of the Senate with a strong bipartisan rollcall, and the
House of Representatives refused to even consider it. That doesn't mean
the problems have gone away. They are still here. What I am saying to
my colleagues is, don't try to fix every immigration problem you can
think of on the backs of these Dreamers like Blanca Morales. I am
willing to talk to you honestly, forthrightly about border security. Count me in. I voted for it as part of comprehensive immigration
reform, but every notion, every idea, every theory you have about
immigration shouldn't be placed on the shoulders and backs of these
young people. Let's fix this, and then let's go on to the next phase of dealing
with immigration reform in its totality. That makes sense to me. I am
ready to bargain, work, compromise in good faith with any Member on the
Republican side and the Democratic side who wants to make sure a young
woman like this deserves a fighting chance in America.
Keywords matched
immigration border security