I was proud to join 180 House Democrats in filing an amicus brief in support of the Obama Administration's appeal in the Fifth Circuit case of Texas v. United States. The case reached the Fifth Circuit after a federal district court granted a preliminary injunction that temporarily blocks the Secretary of Homeland Security from implementing the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) program and expanding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
President Obama's executive actions on immigration are designed to temporarily address major flaws in our broken immigration system. The President's actions include steps to enhance border security, prioritize resources to ensure deportation of felons not families, and to allow certain undocumented immigrants to come out of the shadows, pay taxes, pass a criminal background check and receive temporary relief from deportation.
For far too long, the Republican leadership in Congress has refused to act and pass comprehensive reform fixing our broken immigration system. In light of Republican inaction, I strongly support President Obama's executive actions on immigration. The President is not the first to use executive authority on immigration. In fact, 11 Presidents have taken similar actions 39 times in the past 60 years. We cannot wait any longer -- the President's actions take an important step toward a better immigration system.
I've seen the impact of deportation in my district. It is heartbreaking to see families torn apart for no good reason. Two months ago I participated in an Immigration Action workshop in Des Plaines, IL with Congressman Luis Gutiérrez to educate families about the President's Executive Actions -- 1,000 people attended. They are ready to go -- and we should be, too. That is why we have filed this brief. We have always been a country of immigrants and we must make the changes our country needs. I will continue to stand strongly with my fellow House Democrats, with immigration reform advocates and with millions of hard-working, law-abiding families who want simply to remain together and contribute to our great country.
Additional information, including the full text of the amicus brief, can be found here.