Political Quotes

“it is hard to believe that in this Nation of immigrants we have such a broken immigrant system, but it is a fact. We have addressed so many problems in this system over the years. A few years ago on the floor of the Senate, we passed a comprehensive immigration reform bill, which didn't survive in the House of Representatives. So it is no surprise that, on a regular basis, we face challenges when it comes to our existing immigration laws. One of the most serious challenges is the green card backlog in this country. To try to describe it in just the simplest terms, under the current law, in my estimation, there are not nearly enough immigrant visas--also known as green cards--available each year. Each year in America, there are 226,000 family green cards available and 140,000 employment green cards available. That is 140,000 each year for a nation of 350 million people. So many of those who are aspiring to get a green card and ultimately move to a permanent resident status and citizenship wait and wait and wait for the day to arrive. Children in many of these families who are from workers currently in the United States on things like the H-1B visa age out when they reach the age of 21, and they are no longer protected by their parents' presence. So they are at risk of being deported, even as they go into their teenage years. It is a horrible situation. It is really a heartbreaking situation. I have come to meet and know many of the families affected by it.…”