[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 4852]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1045
                           IMMIGRATION REFORM

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. To my colleagues, I say good morning.
  Madam Speaker, it is good to be an American, and it is good to have 
the opportunity to celebrate the greatest democracy in the world. That 
is why I stand today and join my Democratic colleagues as they appear 
on the east steps in calling all colleagues to stand under the bright 
shining Sun to celebrate that democracy, for, today, Democrats will 
stand united, calling upon our Republican friends to push for a vote on 
comprehensive, reasonable, sensible immigration reform.
  I stand with these icons:

       Remember always that all of us--that you and I especially--
     are descendants from immigrants and revolutionists--President 
     Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
       The land flourished because it was fed from so many 
     sources, because it was nourished by so many cultures and 
     traditions and people--President Lyndon Baines Johnson.
       Everywhere immigrants have enriched and strengthened the 
     fabric of American life--President John F. Kennedy.

  He never strayed away from his strong Irish heritage. Then, of 
course, in Women's History Month:

       I am a beneficiary of the American people's generosity, and 
     I hope we can have comprehensive immigration legislation that 
     allows this country to continue to be enriched by those who 
     were not born here--former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine 
     Albright.

  Sheila Jackson Lee, a descendant of Jamaican immigrants. My 
grandmother and grandfather came by way of the Panama Canal. Today, I 
can go to the Panama Canal and see my grandfather's name X'd there, for 
he worked with his hands to build the Panama Canal. Then the family 
traveled with small suitcases to South Carolina and, ultimately, made a 
life in this great Nation. What a privilege it is to serve in this body 
as a descendant, as someone who has recent immigrant grandparents who 
came to this Nation for opportunity.
  Finally, let me offer these thoughts through this quote:

       This issue has been around for too long. A comprehensive 
     approach is long overdue, and I am confident that the 
     President, myself, and others can find the common ground to 
     take care of this issue once and for all--House Speaker John 
     Boehner.

  Mr. Speaker, I ask you today to stand with those eloquent and 
important Americans, Presidents and Secretaries of State who have 
indicated that we are better for the immigrant opportunities that we 
have been given. Mr. Boehner, we want a vote now.
  As you look, you will see a picture of Leader Pelosi and of myself 
and of my colleague from Alabama (Ms. Sewell). We are not important, 
but the children are who are here, who are diverse in their 
understanding of cultural diversity. Madam Speaker, these children 
speak Chinese and Spanish. They are 2 years old and 3 years old and 4 
years old. They are in the Barbara Jordan International Child Care 
Center. We know we need child care, and they understand the richness of 
what happens with diversity.
  Let me share with you very briefly that there are 16.4 percent of 
Texans who are foreign born: 42 percent are Latino or Asian; 87 percent 
of children with immigrant parents are U.S. citizens, and 75 percent of 
those children are English fluent. These are individuals who want to 
contribute to America. Asian-owned businesses in Texas create $40.2 
billion in revenue, and Latino-owned create $61.9 billion in revenue 
from their businesses.
  Here are the results of deporting rather than putting forward 
comprehensive immigration reform legislation, not for people who want 
to do you harm but who want to do you good. I am glad that H.R. 1417 is 
in the bill that we want to vote on. That is the bipartisan Homeland 
Security bill that I helped write that came out in a bipartisan manner, 
but this is what America will do to herself without comprehensive 
immigration reform:
  We will lose, in wages, $33.2 billion if you deport every person who 
is nonstatus. In tax revenue, you will lose $14.5 billion. In jobs 
creation, you will lose $77.7 billion in the decrease of gross State 
product. This is from the State of Texas alone.
  So, in actuality, comprehensive immigration reform creates jobs, and 
it creates opportunities. But do you know what? It is the right thing 
to do.
  As a young child, I looked to the Statue of Liberty for such 
inspiration. I remember school trips of my going to the Statue of 
Liberty, and I am reminded of that extending arm that said it welcomes 
those who are worn and those who are forlorn. It welcomes them to the 
greatest democracy in the world.
  Give us a vote right now. We want to vote for comprehensive 
immigration reform. We want these children to grow up in a democracy 
that is befitting of this great Nation.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to direct their remarks 
to the Chair.

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