By Merle David Kellerhals Jr.
Washington — President Obama says the only way to repair America’s troubled immigration system is through a comprehensive overhaul that also includes the means to bring an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants into the system legally.
Obama told an audience July 1 at American University’s School of International Service that comprehensive reform means “accountability from everybody — from government, from business and from individuals.”
In his speech, Obama called for legislative reform, which would require considerable support from Democrats and Republicans in Congress, but did not offer specific proposals. Opening the debate with this speech, the president is tackling an issue he pledged to address when he entered office 18 months ago. He faces a Congress that is preparing for mid-term elections in November that quite often cause their own political turbulence.
“Without bipartisan support, as we had just a few years ago, we cannot solve this problem,” Obama said.
The speech follows two days of White House meetings on U.S. immigration policy with immigration activists, business and labor leaders, and members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. The last attempt by Congress to pass an immigration bill was defeated in 2007 when the president was serving as a U.S. senator from Illinois.
“In recent days the issue of immigration has become once more a source of fresh contention in our country with the passage of a controversial law in Arizona and the heated reactions we’ve seen across America,” Obama said. “Given the levels of frustration across the country, this is understandable, but it is also ill-conceived.”
“Our task … is to make our national laws actually work, to shape a system that reflects our values as a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants,” the president said. “And that means being honest about the problem and getting past the false debates that divide the country rather than bring it together.”
But Obama acknowledged that the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants broke U.S. immigration laws and they have to be held accountable even as the system is reformed. But he also said that trying to deport 11 million people is not possible as a way to resolve the issues.
Border security and enforcement policies have been improved without having to wait for a new law, Obama said, and today there are more enforcement officials along the U.S. Southwest border than at any time in U.S. history. The Department of Homeland Security has doubled the number of border enforcement personnel and has tripled the number of intelligence personnel assigned to border security duties, he said.
In addition, all southbound rail shipments are inspected, which has resulted in an increase in seizures of illegal weapons, cash and drugs, Obama said.
“Contrary to some of the reports that you see, crime along the border is down. And statistics collected by Customs and Border Protection reflect a significant reduction in the number of people trying to cross the border illegally,” Obama said.
He acknowledged that work remains to be done, but said the border security issue presents problems too vast to resolve with only fences and border agents. “It won’t work,” he said.
The president said that those American businesses that hire and exploit undocumented workers must be held accountable, and workplace enforcement is increasing. The federal government is improving a system that gives employers a means of verifying if their employees are in the United States legally, he added.
“Finally, we have to demand responsibility from people living here illegally,” Obama said. “They must be required to admit that they broke the law. They should be required to register, pay their taxes, pay a fine and learn English.”
“They must get right with the law before they can get in line and earn their citizenship,” he added.
Obama said being a U.S. citizen comes with rights, but also with certain responsibilities, and that a pathway can be created for legal status that is fair and reflects basic American values.
