House GOP Immigration Principles Omit the Most Important Principle: Protecting the Interests of the American People

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Jan 30, 2014, 05:53 ET

WASHINGTON, Jan. 30, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In response to today's release by the Republican House leadership of their principles for immigration reform, the following statement was issued by Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR):

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"Instead of standing up for Americans, House Republicans have unfortunately offered nothing more than a vague set of principles in a seeming effort to satisfy special interests, while wholesale ignoring the American People.

"The Republican principles call for illegal aliens to be allowed to 'live legally and without fear in the U.S.' of having the law enforced against them. This is clearly and undeniably amnesty. There is one way for illegal aliens to 'get right with the law,' and that is to obey the law.

"In addition, the document calls for immediate and unconditional amnesty for younger illegal aliens. The DREAM Act has been repeatedly rejected by Congress and the American people. It is an inducement for millions more parents to send or bring their children to the United States illegally in the future.

"Like the Senate bill they disavow, the House GOP principles would grant immediate legal status to illegal aliens before any enforcement provisions are in place. The Republican principles reiterate enforcement promises that have already been enacted and routinely ignored by both Democratic and Republican administrations.

"The principles clearly bear the fingerprints of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other corporate interests that have been aggressively lobbying the House leadership for more cheap foreign labor, both permanent and temporary. Moreover, while criticizing the current family chain migration policy, the Republican principles do not call for the elimination of immigration entitlements for extended family members.

"Like President Obama, the House leadership's principles would put a dagger through the heart of the struggling American middle class by flooding our already saturated labor market with millions of new workers who will compete against them for jobs and undercut wages.

"Like President Obama, the House leadership's plan for immigration reform would place unsustainable burdens on our already overburdened and underfunded social safety net.

"In short, the principles offered by the House leadership not only ignore the core interests of the American people, they willingly sacrifice those interests to satisfy the demands of powerful special interest groups."

About FAIR
Founded in 1979, FAIR is the country's largest immigration reform group. With over 250,000 members nationwide, FAIR fights for immigration policies that serve national interests, not special interests. FAIR believes that immigration reform must enhance national security, improve the economy, protect jobs, preserve our environment, and establish a rule of law that is recognized and enforced.

SOURCE FAIR