Political Quotes

“The American people are a compassionate people. They are a people who welcome immigrants because we are a nation of immigrants and we always have been. I think most of us hope we always will be. We want people to continue to come to this country. It is this sense of compassion that causes many of us to have some sense of concern about this particular legislation. This legislation goes far beyond simply showing compassion. This legislation in some ways is the opposite of compassion when you consider it from the perspective of those who, like this woman who wrote this letter to me, have come here legally. And those who, unlike her, have waited--in some cases for years outside the United States. There are many people who have spent a lot of money and time hoping and praying that one day they too will get to immigrate to this country legally. We do them a great disservice when we say the effort, time, blood, sweat, and tears they devoted to this process is all for naught, because all they had to do was come here illegally, and not only were they put on a pathway to legalization but on a pathway to citizenship. One of the more enlightening moments in the Senate Judiciary Committee during the markup of this bill was when our friend and colleague, the junior Senator from Texas, introduced an amendment which would have done one simple thing to adjust that process. All hell broke loose.…”