Hoyer Statement on the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals' Immigration Decision

Statement

House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) released the following statement today on the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals' decision to prevent implementation of President Obama's executive actions on immigration (see below for Spanish translation):

"I am very disappointed in yesterday's decision by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals to continue preventing the implementation of the President's DAPA and expanded DACA programs to keep immigrant families together, which I believe does not reflect clear legal precedent that support the Administration's actions. Our immigration system is broken, and Congress has an obligation to fix it through comprehensive reform. President Obama acted last November through his executive authority to do what the Republican-led Congress has refused to do through legislation and focus federal law enforcement resources on apprehending criminals instead of tearing apart the families of undocumented immigrants who are already living and working here and contributing to our economy and America's future.

"Coming just days after Speaker Ryan stated that the House would not consider comprehensive immigration reform this Congress, yesterday's decision ought to be a reminder to Congress that it cannot wait to act. Americans have every right to wonder if their elected leaders are, in fact, serving the national interest when Republicans in Congress refuse to work with the President to address a major national challenge. Congress must step up without delay to move forward with bipartisan, comprehensive immigration reform that keeps families together, creates an earned pathway to citizenship, secures our borders, and enables us to attract and retain innovators to our country. House Democrats are ready to work with Republicans to achieve that goal."

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