Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

From the White House: Statement by President Obama on Senate Passage of Immigration Reform:

Statement by President Obama on Senate Passage of Immigration Reform

Today, with a strong bipartisan vote, the United States Senate
delivered for the American people, bringing us a critical step closer to
fixing our broken immigration system once and for all.

I thank Majority Leader Reid, Senator Leahy, Senator
Schumer, and every member of the ‘Gang of Eight’ for their leadership,
and I commend all Senators who worked across party lines to get this
done.

The bipartisan bill that passed today was a compromise.
By definition, nobody got everything they wanted.  Not Democrats.  Not
Republicans.  Not me.  But the Senate bill is consistent with the key
principles for commonsense reform that I – and many others – have
repeatedly laid out.

If enacted, the Senate bill would establish the most
aggressive border security plan in our history.  It would offer a
pathway to earned citizenship for the 11 million individuals who are in
this country illegally – a pathway that includes passing a background
check, learning English, paying taxes and a penalty, and then going to
the back of the line behind everyone who’s playing by the rules and
trying to come here legally.  It would modernize the legal immigration
system so that it once again reflects our values as a nation and
addresses the urgent needs of our time.  And it would provide a big
boost to our recovery, by shrinking our deficits and growing our
economy.

Today, the Senate did its job.  It’s now up to the House to do the same. 

As this process moves forward, I urge everyone who cares
about this issue to keep a watchful eye.  Now is the time when opponents
will try their hardest to pull this bipartisan effort apart so they can
stop commonsense reform from becoming a reality.  We cannot let that
happen.  If you’re among the clear majority of Americans who support
reform – from CEOs to labor leaders, law enforcement to clergy – reach
out to your Member of Congress.  Tell them to do the right thing.  Tell
them to pass commonsense reform so that our businesses and workers are
all playing by the same rules and everyone who’s in this country is
paying their fair share in taxes.

We have a unique opportunity to fix our broken system in a
way that upholds our traditions as a nation of laws and a nation of
immigrants.  We just need Congress to finish the job.

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