WASHINGTON - Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus applauded a Federal judge's decision to block controversial parts of Arizona's immigration law.
At a news conference, they stated that the need for immigration reform is bigger than ever because the current system is broken.
"Let's not try to live in a fantasy world, twelve million people aren't simply going to get up and leave." said Illinois Rep. Luis Gutierrez. "We have people waiting to be reunited with their families for more than twenty years.. they petitioned the government legally, we need to fix this."
These lawmakers say there are no incentives for people to use legal ways to get into the country and that's how the U.S. has 12 million illegal immigrants.
"They say we proposed amnesty, no - we propose they register with the American government, give us their finger prints, go through a security background check and if we found out they haven't violated any other law, but their undocumented status working here.. then we're gonna give them a card. And with that card, we'll say go work, go pay your taxes, take English classes, go take civic classes, and show us that you deserve a permanent card down the road." said Gutierrez.
No Republican is supporting Gutierrez's legislation. While they do support immigration reform, they do not support any sort of amnesty.
New York Rep. Nydia Velazquez says "So we urge Republicans to stop playing politics and start supporting true comprehensive immigration reform, the American people want real solutions."
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