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The White House
Remarks by the
President in Address to the Nation on Immigration
Nov. 20, 2014
My fellow Americans, tonight, I’d like to talk with you about
immigration.
For more than 200 years, our tradition of welcoming immigrants from
around the world has given us a tremendous advantage over other
nations. It’s kept us youthful, dynamic, and entrepreneurial. It has
shaped our character as a people with limitless possibilities –- people
not trapped by our past, but able to remake ourselves as we choose.
But today, our immigration system is broken -- and everybody knows it.
Families who enter our country the right way and play by the rules
watch others flout the rules. Business owners who offer their workers
good wages and benefits see the competition exploit undocumented
immigrants by paying them far less. All of us take offense to anyone
who reaps the rewards of living in America without taking on the
responsibilities of living in America. And undocumented immigrants who
desperately want to embrace those responsibilities see little option
but to remain in the shadows, or risk their families being torn apart.
It’s been this way for decades. And for decades, we haven’t done much
about it.
When I took office, I committed to fixing this broken immigration
system. And I began by doing what I could to secure our borders. Today,
we have more agents and technology deployed to secure our southern
border than at any time in our history. And over the past six years,
illegal border crossings have been cut by more than half. Although this
summer, there was a brief spike in unaccompanied children being
apprehended at our border, the number of such children is now actually
lower than it’s been in nearly two years. Overall, the number of people
trying to cross our border illegally is at its lowest level since the
1970s. Those are the facts.
Meanwhile, I worked with Congress on a comprehensive fix, and last
year, 68 Democrats, Republicans, and independents came together to pass
a bipartisan bill in the Senate. It wasn’t perfect. It was a
compromise. But it reflected common sense. It would have doubled the
number of border patrol agents while giving undocumented immigrants a
pathway to citizenship if they paid a fine, started paying their taxes,
and went to the back of the line. And independent experts said that it
would help grow our economy and shrink our deficits.
Had the House of Representatives allowed that kind of bill a simple
yes-or-no vote, it would have passed with support from both parties,
and today it would be the law. But for a year and a half now,
Republican leaders in the House have refused to allow that simple vote.
Now, I continue to believe that the best way to solve this problem is
by working together to pass that kind of common sense law. But until
that happens, there are actions I have the legal authority to take as
President –- the same kinds of actions taken by Democratic and
Republican presidents before me -– that will help make our immigration
system more fair and more just.
Tonight, I am announcing those actions.
First, we’ll build on our progress at the border with additional
resources for our law enforcement personnel so that they can stem the
flow of illegal crossings, and speed the return of those who do cross
over.
Second, I’ll make it easier and faster for high-skilled immigrants,
graduates, and entrepreneurs to stay and contribute to our economy, as
so many business leaders have proposed.
Third, we’ll take steps to deal responsibly with the millions of
undocumented immigrants who already live in our country.
I want to say more about this third issue, because it generates the
most passion and controversy. Even as we are a nation of immigrants,
we’re also a nation of laws. Undocumented workers broke our immigration
laws, and I believe that they must be held accountable -– especially
those who may be dangerous. That’s why, over the past six years,
deportations of criminals are up 80 percent. And that’s why we’re going
to keep focusing enforcement resources on actual threats to our
security. Felons, not families. Criminals, not children. Gang members,
not a mom who’s working hard to provide for her kids. We’ll prioritize,
just like law enforcement does every day.
But even as we focus on deporting criminals, the fact is, millions of
immigrants in every state, of every race and nationality still live
here illegally. And let’s be honest -– tracking down, rounding up, and
deporting millions of people isn’t realistic. Anyone who suggests
otherwise isn’t being straight with you. It’s also not who we are as
Americans. After all, most of these immigrants have been here a long
time. They work hard, often in tough, low-paying jobs. They support
their families. They worship at our churches. Many of their kids are
American-born or spent most of their lives here, and their hopes,
dreams, and patriotism are just like ours. As my predecessor, President
Bush, once put it: “They are a part of American life.”
Now here’s the thing: We expect people who live in this country to play
by the rules. We expect that those who cut the line will not be
unfairly rewarded. So we’re going to offer the following deal: If
you’ve been in America for more than five years; if you have children
who are American citizens or legal residents; if you register, pass a
criminal background check, and you’re willing to pay your fair share of
taxes -- you’ll be able to apply to stay in this country temporarily
without fear of deportation. You can come out of the shadows and get
right with the law. That’s what this deal is.
Now, let’s be clear about what it isn’t. This deal does not apply to
anyone who has come to this country recently. It does not apply to
anyone who might come to America illegally in the future. It does not
grant citizenship, or the right to stay here permanently, or offer the
same benefits that citizens receive -– only Congress can do that. All
we’re saying is we’re not going to deport you.
I know some of the critics of this action call it amnesty. Well, it’s
not. Amnesty is the immigration system we have today -– millions of
people who live here without paying their taxes or playing by the rules
while politicians use the issue to scare people and whip up votes at
election time.
That’s the real amnesty –- leaving this broken system the way it is.
Mass amnesty would be unfair. Mass deportation would be both impossible
and contrary to our character. What I’m describing is accountability –-
a common-sense, middle-ground approach: If you meet the criteria, you
can come out of the shadows and get right with the law. If you’re a
criminal, you’ll be deported. If you plan to enter the U.S. illegally,
your chances of getting caught and sent back just went up.
The actions I’m taking are not only lawful, they’re the kinds of
actions taken by every single Republican President and every single
Democratic President for the past half century. And to those members of
Congress who question my authority to make our immigration system work
better, or question the wisdom of me acting where Congress has failed,
I have one answer: Pass a bill.
I want to work with both parties to pass a more permanent legislative
solution. And the day I sign that bill into law, the actions I take
will no longer be necessary. Meanwhile, don’t let a disagreement over a
single issue be a dealbreaker on every issue. That’s not how our
democracy works, and Congress certainly shouldn’t shut down our
government again just because we disagree on this. Americans are tired
of gridlock. What our country needs from us right now is a common
purpose –- a higher purpose.
Most Americans support the types of reforms I’ve talked about tonight.
But I understand the disagreements held by many of you at home.
Millions of us, myself included, go back generations in this country,
with ancestors who put in the painstaking work to become citizens. So
we don’t like the notion that anyone might get a free pass to American
citizenship.
I know some worry immigration will change the very fabric of who we
are, or take our jobs, or stick it to middle-class families at a time
when they already feel like they’ve gotten the raw deal for over a
decade. I hear these concerns. But that’s not what these steps would
do. Our history and the facts show that immigrants are a net plus for
our economy and our society. And I believe it’s important that all of
us have this debate without impugning each other’s character.
Because for all the back and forth of Washington, we have to remember
that this debate is about something bigger. It’s about who we are as a
country, and who we want to be for future generations.
Are we a nation that tolerates the hypocrisy of a system where workers
who pick our fruit and make our beds never have a chance to get right
with the law? Or are we a nation that gives them a chance to make
amends, take responsibility, and give their kids a better future?
Are we a nation that accepts the cruelty of ripping children from their
parents’ arms? Or are we a nation that values families, and works
together to keep them together?
Are we a nation that educates the world’s best and brightest in our
universities, only to send them home to create businesses in countries
that compete against us? Or are we a nation that encourages them to
stay and create jobs here, create businesses here, create industries
right here in America?
That’s what this debate is all about. We need more than politics as
usual when it comes to immigration. We need reasoned, thoughtful,
compassionate debate that focuses on our hopes, not our fears. I know
the politics of this issue are tough. But let me tell you why I have
come to feel so strongly about it.
Over the past few years, I have seen the determination of immigrant
fathers who worked two or three jobs without taking a dime from the
government, and at risk any moment of losing it all, just to build a
better life for their kids. I’ve seen the heartbreak and anxiety of
children whose mothers might be taken away from them just because they
didn’t have the right papers. I’ve seen the courage of students who,
except for the circumstances of their birth, are as American as Malia
or Sasha; students who bravely come out as undocumented in hopes they
could make a difference in the country they love.
These people –- our neighbors, our classmates, our friends –- they did
not come here in search of a free ride or an easy life. They came to
work, and study, and serve in our military, and above all, contribute
to America’s success.
Tomorrow, I’ll travel to Las Vegas and meet with some of these
students, including a young woman named Astrid Silva. Astrid was
brought to America when she was four years old. Her only possessions
were a cross, her doll, and the frilly dress she had on. When she
started school, she didn’t speak any English. She caught up to other
kids by reading newspapers and watching PBS, and she became a good
student. Her father worked in landscaping. Her mom cleaned other
people’s homes. They wouldn’t let Astrid apply to a technology magnet
school, not because they didn’t love her, but because they were afraid
the paperwork would out her as an undocumented immigrant –- so she
applied behind their back and got in. Still, she mostly lived in the
shadows –- until her grandmother, who visited every year from Mexico,
passed away, and she couldn’t travel to the funeral without risk of
being found out and deported. It was around that time she decided to
begin advocating for herself and others like her, and today, Astrid
Silva is a college student working on her third degree.
Are we a nation that kicks out a striving, hopeful immigrant like
Astrid, or are we a nation that finds a way to welcome her in?
Scripture tells us that we shall not oppress a stranger, for we know
the heart of a stranger –- we were strangers once, too.
My fellow Americans, we are and always will be a nation of immigrants.
We were strangers once, too. And whether our forebears were strangers
who crossed the Atlantic, or the Pacific, or the Rio Grande, we are
here only because this country welcomed them in, and taught them that
to be an American is about something more than what we look like, or
what our last names are, or how we worship. What makes us Americans is
our shared commitment to an ideal -– that all of us are created equal,
and all of us have the chance to make of our lives what we will.
That’s the country our parents and grandparents and generations before
them built for us. That’s the tradition we must uphold. That’s the
legacy we must leave for those who are yet to come.
Thank you. God bless you. And God bless this country we love.
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