Washington, DC -- Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY-17) issued the following statement following President Barack Obama’s speech in El Paso, Texas today regarding immigration reform.

“I applaud President Obama for taking the lead on bringing immigration reform back to the foreground in our national debate.  It is long overdue.  I was supportive of the McCain/Kennedy reform bill which passed the Senate during the Bush Administration, but was effectively killed by the Republican-controlled House.  I supported the DREAM Act which passed the House last year, received a majority vote in the Senate, but was blocked by a Republican filibuster. 

“If we finally address this system – fixing the legal immigration process and addressing the growing illegal immigration problem – we not only will strengthen our national security, but will aid our economy by eliminating the exploitation of millions of people.  It is also the right thing to do.  We are a nation of immigrants.  My family came to America looking for the American Dream, just as millions of people come to America today from all around the world.  We are a stronger nation when we have a strong and vibrant influx of immigrants.  E pluribus, unum.  Out of many, one. 

“Immigration was supposedly solved under President Reagan, but we failed to protect our borders and now we are back in the same situation.  The 11 million undocumented workers are not going anywhere, and we must figure out a path to citizenship for them, secure our borders, and fix our immigration system. I look forward to the debate in the House and am hopeful we can come together in a bipartisan manner to fix this problem once and for all.”

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