Political Quotes

“for 20 years now, I have come to this floor hundreds of times to speak on behalf of the DREAM Act, which I introduced long ago. During that period of time, I have had an occasional vote. I have not been successful in making it the law of the land. The closest I came was about 8 years ago, when we had the comprehensive immigration reform bill. Four Democratic Senators and four Republican Senators--and I was among them--worked for months to try to address our immigration system. We came up with an agreement that was no mean feat. It is a complex area of law. It is a controversial area of law. It is an area of law that changes almost by the day, and we were trying to find a solution to all the challenges it presents. To think that we are a nation of immigrants and, then, to reflect on our history on immigration is to leave one puzzled. Most of the time we have been against immigration, despite the arrival of good people on our borders. Occasionally, when we were building a transcontinental railroad, we would invite people from China in to take the backbreaking jobs, only to categorically exclude them from immigration in the meantime. It is hard to explain, understand, or appreciate where we stand on immigration. When I hear the Republican leader come to the floor and criticize President Obama for DACA, I have to say that it is personal to me.…”