In a letter to Speaker of the House John Boehner dated April 23, Suffolk Congressional Representative Peter King called for the passage of an immigration bill legalizing the immigration status of most undocumented immigrants and creating a pathway to citizenship for them.
“As to the issues of legalization and citizenship for undocumented immigrants, I fully understand and appreciate the argument that illegal behavior should not be rewarded,” King wrote to Boehner. “The reality though is that we are not going to deport 11 million immigrants.” He warned that failure to pass a reform bill risked creating a permanent underclass of foreign-born workers with no stake in American society.
King described undocumented immigrants as “Hard working people,” who, he said, make “valuable contributions to the American mosaic.”
King’s letter comes against a background of renewed efforts to press for immigration reform before the time to pass a bill in 2014 runs out. Two House Republicans from Illinois spoke out this week for reform legislation and even John Boehner expressed dissatisfaction with the foot dragging of his conservative colleagues.
Peter King had promised to write the letter earlier this year at a community meeting in Brentwood at the offices of Make the Road. At a pre-Easter sit-down recently that I attended between King’s staff and LICET, CARECEN, and Make the Road, the request was renewed. Please call Peter King at 516-541-4225 and say thank you for sending the letter to Speaker Boehner.
