President Obama Calls for Bipartisan Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill
This morning, President Obama gave a major speech on the need to pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill that fixes the nation’s broken system. The president called on Congress to put aside politics and pass a bipartisan bill.
“I believe that we can put politics aside and finally have an immigration system that works,” said Obama.
Obama explained the seriousness of the situation, pointing to the vulnerability of undocumented workers and the cumbersome nature of the current system that sometimes tears families apart. He said comprehensive immigration reform must be a “commonsense approach that reflects our values and principles” and said that it is possible to “create a pathway [to citizenship] that is fair, reflective of our values, and works.”
The nation’s immigration system is broken and nearly 11 million undocumented immigrants are in the U.S. However, Congressional action on reform to fix it has been stalled since a bipartisan bill – which civil rights groups viewed as “seriously flawed” – failed in 2007.
The Leadership Conference and the civil rights community have long supported comprehensive immigration reform legislation that provides a path to citizenship for undocumented workers, reduces family visa backlogs, ramps up enforcement while respecting civil rights and liberties, and protects the rights of workers regardless of immigration status.
- Full text of the speech.
- More information on comprehensive immigration reform in our immigration section.
- More information on what you can do in our Action Center.