Executive Needs to Faithfully Observe and Respect Congressional Enactments of the Law Act of 2014

Floor Speech

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Mr. FOSTER. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in opposition to the ENFORCE Act.

For 20 years, our immigration system has been left to rot due to congressional inaction. As a result, today we have over 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the shadows.

After 20 years of neglect, we finally have a commonsense immigration reform package that has already passed the Senate with bipartisan support and has an unprecedented array of support from religious groups, law enforcement, and business leaders throughout the country. It is rare to find a subject that labor leaders and the Chamber of Commerce can agree on, but both have called on Congress to promptly pass comprehensive immigration reform. Speaker Boehner and the House Republican leadership have ignored the millions of voices calling for reform, refusing even to bring it up for a vote.

Now, today, we are preparing to vote on the ENFORCE Act, legislation that would have the practical effect of ripping millions of young men and women away from the only home they have ever known.

The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program has allowed countless undocumented youth to remain in the U.S. to attend our schools and to contribute to our economy.

The CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.

Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Chair, I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.

Mr. FOSTER. Instead of fixing our broken immigration system, Republicans are doubling down on costly deportation and detention practices that are costing taxpayers millions and tearing families apart.

Mr. Chairman, we can't fix the problem by ignoring the symptoms. We cannot fix our broken immigration system either with more deportations or specious constitutional arguments, which is exactly what Republicans are attempting to do today with the ENFORCE Act.

It is time for Republicans to stop inventing incoherent, self-serving, and self-contradictory lines of constitutional reasoning and to start listening to the millions of voices calling for action and pass comprehensive immigration reform.

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