Political Quotes

“First, let me clarify what the policy being attacked by this amendment actually does. This policy does not confer a new path to permanent status, let alone a new path to citizenship. The people who will benefit from the policy are already eligible for a green card, but the policy removes a barrier that would require almost all families to be separated for 10 years before the undocumented immigrant could be eligible for a green card. On average, these immigrants have been in the United States for 23 years, are married to U.S. citizens, and still must go through a lengthy green card process. However, with this policy in place, people get to go through the legal steps of getting a green card without being separated for a decade or longer from their families. Any advocate for family values and unity should support this new process, which only applies to a limited subset of immigrants. Instead of being attacked, we should all applaud the Biden administration for advancing this policy. It demonstrates that the United States prioritizes family unity over archaic and harmful bureaucratic processes that serve no value and certainly provide no deterrence effect. Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to support this new policy and vote ``no'' on this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.”