Mavni and Combating Legal Immigration

Floor Speech

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Mr. CORREA. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to pose a simple question: What is merit-based immigration? Because it would seem that we have a different interpretation from that of our President.

Panshu Zhao came to this country legally and joined the Army while pursuing a Ph.D. He came to our country to be an American and to contribute to the greatness of our Nation just like other generations before all of us. He is one of the more than 10,000 legal immigrants offered a chance to become a citizen through service and sacrifice.

These legal immigrants enlist in our Armed Forces with vital skills. They have education, they are meritorious, and they are needed. But this administration has now made going after legal immigrants one of its primary goals.

When they threaten to deport doctors in the Army, the administration is going after legal immigrants. When ICE arrests green card holders over minor charges in their distant past, they are going after legal immigrants.

If a soldier pursuing a Ph.D. does not qualify for merit-based immigration, then who does?

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