Following a meeting with key business leaders, President Obama reiterated his push for comprehensive immigration reform, stressing that there is “no reason” why we can’t have this issue resolved before the end of this year.
Here is video of his remarks, courtesy of CBS News.
“Although right now there’s been some resistance from House Republicans, what’s been encouraging is that there are a number of House Republicans who have said we think this is the right thing to do as well,” Obama said on Tuesday at the White House. “It’s my estimation that we actually have the votes to get comprehensive immigration reform done in the House right now. The politics are challenging for [Speaker Boehner] and others, and we want to make it as easy for them as possible. This is not an issue where we’re looking for a political win, this is one where we’re looking for a substantive win for the U.S. economy and the American people and the businesses that are represented here.”
Immigration reform has largely stalled since the Senate passed a comprehensive, bipartisan bill earlier in the Summer. House Speaker John Boehner has refused to bring any bill to the House floor for a vote without majority Republican support. According to America’s Voice, there are at least 28 House Republicans that have publicly expressed support for immigration reform with a pathway to citizenship. For a bill to pass, there would only need to be 218 votes in favor. With at least 200 House Democrats and at least 28 Republicans who support immigration reform, we would easily have the votes to pass a bill if Speaker Boehner simply allowed a vote.
We need to continue putting pressure on our local representatives, including Long Island’s Peter King, to join their colleagues in the House in supporting comprehensive immigration reform that keeps our families together and brings 11 million aspiring Americans out of the shadows.
