Senate majority Leader Harry Reid recently said that Democrats would not allow any immigration reform that did not include a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. “There will be nothing done in my Senate [on immigration reform] without a pathway to citizenship.”
Both parties have shown interest in approving immigration legislation, but there are discussions about what should be included in the legislation. Democrats are heavily focusing on including some sort of pathway to residency or citizenship for the undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. Deportation is not an option, but leaving them in the country without a way to attain legal status does not fix any problem. Republicans are opposing such measures and believe that a better way is to strengthen border security to finish what has been started and prevent immigrants from coming to the U.S. when it is unannounced that anyone will be granted citizenship.
Reid says that the new bill will not focus on border security. “We have spent a huge amount of money on border security, and both our northern and southern borders are more secure," Reid said. "Frankly, Mexico is doing much better economically, and that has helped the issue a lot. We can’t build a fence of 3,000 miles because no matter how high we build it, they can build a ladder taller than that fence. So I think we have about expended our energy on border security." Border security has been emphasized previously, but funding was stopped and operations also ceased to continue. Now, legislators are looking for a different approach to immigration to strengthen and redefine U.S. laws to be fair to both citizens and immigrants alike.
Sen. Marco Rubio, who is considered to be a party leader among the Republicans on immigration reform, is now a top contender who will potentially be running for president in 2016. He outlined a blueprint on the immigration reform bill that included a pathway to citizenship for those living in the U.S. without documents. Rep. Paul Ryan also threw his support behind Rubio and both hope that more Republicans will follow suit. Democrats will not compromise on any plan without a pathway to citizenship and a compromise must be met sooner or later.
If you have naturalization questions or are wondering how immigration reform could impact your ability to get into status in Missouri, contact us at 314-961-8200 or visit our contact page.
