Calling for Deportation Relief and for the Swift Enactment of Comprehensive Immigration Reform

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call on my colleagues to expand the deferred action guidelines to provide deportation relief for the immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, Legal Permanent Residents and DREAMers. Earlier this month, I joined some of my colleagues in asking President Obama to use his prosecutorial discretion at all levels of immigration enforcement proceedings.

A majority of my colleagues and I are committed to comprehensive immigration reform and have demanded a vote on the House Floor. It is imperative that the House put politics aside and work together to reach a compromise that will benefit our country, strengthen our economy, and allow 11 million people to step out of the shadows. The House must enact immigration reform that is fair and reflects the highest values of our nation. We are a country of immigrants and how we treat those who aspire to be citizens reflects our democracy's commitment to uphold the moral principles upon which our nation was built.

As we continue to fight for comprehensive immigration reform, we cannot ignore the fact that families and communities are being torn apart on a daily basis. The impact of watching a parent, sibling or child being ripped away from the family unit is crushing and causes untold damage. We must restore judicial discretion and expand deferred action guidelines to provide deportation relief to immigrants who have done nothing wrong but seek a better life for their children, their families, and themselves.

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