Luis Gutierrez
Too many people fought too hard to make sure all citizens of all colors, races, ethnicities, genders, and abilities can vote to think that not voting somehow sends a message.
The Congressional Hispanic Caucus has been clear that deporting young people who have lived in the U.S. for years and were brought here through no fault of their own as children should not be the targets of deportation.
We should allow DREAMers to declare that they are not criminals, that they want to be here, want to fully participate in their society and get on the books. We should make college, work, and military service available to them.
In my experience, young people fighting for the passage of the DREAM Act and to prevent the deportation of those who are eligible are among the most committed and fearless advocates for change in this country.
In the immigration debate, some things are constant. They never change. One is that opponents of immigration reform will use it as a wedge issue and will blame everything from unemployment to rising health care costs on immigrants.
The immigrant blame game is constant. Cynical politicians believe it drives poll numbers; cynical commentators believe it drives TV ratings.
The immigrant blame game is one of the most predictable, and most deplorable, elements of public debate in our nation.
In the public debate, while commentators and critics have targeted immigrants with blame and bullying, our nation's immigrants have simply kept on working, kept on contributing, and kept on hoping for a solution.
If immigration reform is bad for America's workers, then why does virtually every group that represents American workers support it so enthusiastically?
Lots of special interests play the immigrant blame game every day because they like things the way they are and don't see a need for change.
The American people overwhelmingly want to see smart policy that secures our families, our borders, and our economy.
We need the federal government to assert their supremacy over the immigration issue and make it clear to state legislatures, cowboy cops, and the American people that the federal government is in charge and effectively enforcing and regulating immigration.
Obama the President needs to stand up for what Obama the candidate and what Obama the Senator and what Obama the Chicago community organizer stood for and lead the Congress towards reform.
I am a senior Democratic Member of Congress whose parents were born in Puerto Rico and for whom Puerto Rico self-determination has been - and remains - a central issue of my congressional career.
I have only one loyalty and that's to the immigrant community.Collection: Loyalty
I will argue until my last breath for a pathway to citizenship that is quick and efficient because I want to end this chapter. I want to end it...But let me say, conversely, I am as committed as any Republican to ending illegal immigration as we know it...They want to end it. So do I.Collection: Pathways
The Congress talks and talks and talks and talks, but doesn't act. I'm going to continue to work with my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to bring about comprehensive immigration reform.Collection: Immigration
So given that reality, let us not cast that all of the problems and ills of our society are somehow upon the immigrants who have come to this country.Collection: Country
The next step has to be the necessary step. It's always to put the immigrant community and the civil rights movement ahead of partisan politics.Collection: Rights
It is so difficult to, day in and day out, hear these incredibly painful stories of the destructive nature of our broken immigration system.Collection: Broken
The politics, policies, the President [Barack Obama] and the American people are all pointing in the right direction to fix our immigration system and pass legislation this year.Collection: Years
I have traveled to Florida, I have traveled to Georgia, I have traveled to California, you and I both know that there are millions of undocumented workers that work hard, sweat soil every day to put the food we eat on our table. That's not a myth, that's a reality. Why don't we let them come with visas to this country so that then we don't have people using that border.Collection: Country
Nothing happens here in this building, in the House of Representatives, if there's no demand from outside the Capitol.Collection: House
I think the real, fundamental problem that the Republicans have is, 'How do we get meaner, how do we get nastier with immigrants, so that we can take a smaller group,' now apparently led by Senator Cruz - I mean, maybe he's gonna be the next Speaker of the House. Because it's quite clear that Mr. Boehner has no control over this conference.Collection: Real
I mean, the greatest laugh I always get is, if darkness, right, just overwhelms the Earth one day and Obama had the key to light, he says, "I have a bill that will bring sunlight," they'd rather live in darkness than have him bring the light.Collection: Mean
There is this kind of sense in the immigrant community, first we were going to do immigration reform, but then 9/11 happened.Collection: Community
So where are they moving today? They're going to move to be meaner to immigrants in order to bring their conference together.Collection: Moving