Gephardt Plan to Legalize Illegal Immigrants is Offensive and Wrong
Statement by U.S.ENGLISH Chairman and CEO Mauro E. Mujica
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Proposed legislation by U.S. House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt
(D-MO) to grant permanent residency status to millions of illegal immigrants is outrageous and
is blatant political pandering of the highest level.
As a legal immigrant from Chile, I am embarrassed and ashamed of our so-called political leaders
constant battling to win over the "Hispanic vote." As a Hispanic, I am here to tell you there
is no such thing. Why then, are Democrats and Republicans falling all over themselves to win
the accolades of illegal Mexican workers instead of working equally hard for the votes of
legal citizens everywhere?
Rep. Gephardt's irresponsible move proves once again that it is impossible for the GOP - no
matter how hard they try - to out-pander the Democrats. Rep. Gephardt's hardball volley in
the race for the "Hispanic vote" raises the stakes by promising lawbreakers a new unencumbered
life in the U.S.
His reckless and selfish message is loud and clear: "Those who come to our great land legally
are stupid for doing so. Join the scofflaws and jump the line and move to the head of the class.
It's the name of the game here in the U.S."
The losers in this bidding contest for the special interest Mexican-American vote are those
would-be immigrants who play by the rules and don't jump the queue, and everyday, law-abiding
citizens who don't believe in rewarding scofflaws with citizenship. As I've long said, a move
like the one proposed by Rep. Gephardt will only evoke animosity among those immigrants who
played by the rules to live here legally or to become naturalized Americans.
It's time we stop coddling the illegal Mexicans, and instead address the needs of our legal
immigrants in order to help them integrate into our great society and realize the American dream.
The high school dropout numbers for immigrants remain devastating, and many adults are consigned
to a low-wage ghetto because they have not learned elementary work-force survival skills, such as
the ability to speak our common language - English.
Instead of jumping onto the Political Pandering Express, U.S.ENGLISH urges our leaders to stand
tall and do what's right: Help our legal immigrants escape the 'linguistic welfare system' they
have been barely surviving in, before blindly throwing open our doors to a select group who have
broken our laws to get here.
U.S.ENGLISH is the nation's oldest and largest citizens' action group dedicated
to preserving the unifying role of the English language in the United States. Founded in 1983 by
the late Sen. S.I. Hayakawa of California, U.S.ENGLISH now has more than 1.7 million members nationwide.
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