    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2007, Book I)]
    [June 1, 2007]
    [Pages 676-678]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following a Briefing on Comprehensive Immigration Reform
    June 1, 2007

        First, I thank you very much for your hard work on a comprehensive
    immigration bill and your concern about our country. And the two go hand
    in hand. I believe that now is the time to address the issue of
    immigration. I think it's in our national security interests, and I
    think it's in the interest of making sure America never loses sight of
    who we are.
        This is a difficult issue for a lot of folks; I understand that. But
    because it's difficult probably means we need to work doubly hard to get
    it done. And now is the time to get it done. No matter how difficult it
    may seem for some politically, I strongly believe it's in this Nation's
    interest for people here in Washington to show courage and resolve and
    pass a comprehensive immigration reform.
        My administration is deeply involved in this issue. I feel
    passionate about the issue. I believe it's in this country's interest to
    solve the problem. I believe it's in our interest when we find a system
    that is broken to fix it, and the immigration system today is broken.
    And I've asked Michael and Carlos
    Gutierrez to work the issue on the Hill,
    and these men are doing good work. They understand the issue; they
    understand the bill; and they understand they need to work with the
    Republicans and Democrats to get the job done.
        I say the system isn't working because there's a lot of Americans
    who say that the government is not enforcing our border. I say the
    system is broken because there are people coming into America to do work
    that Americans are not doing. And there are good, decent employers who
    unknowingly are hiring them, which is against the law.
        The system is broken, in my judgment, because there are 11 to 12
    million people living in the shadows of a free society. The system is
    broken because there are people who are exploiting human beings for
    material gain. There are coyotes--those are human smugglers--charging
    decent people large sums of money to come and work to put food on the
    table for their families.
        There's a document forgery industry in place, because the system is
    broken, providing people with false documentation so they can do work
    that Americans are not doing in order to provide for their families.
    There are so-called innkeepers providing substandard hovels for people
    who are smuggled into our country. In other words, we have got a system
    that is causing people--good, decent people--to be exploited. And
    therefore, now is the time to get it fixed.
        For those concerned about border security, this bill focuses on
    border security. For those concerned about making sure that we have
    workers available to do jobs--decent jobs to make sure our economy
    continues to grow--this bill addresses that issue. For those concerned
    that we must enable 11 to 12 million people to come out of the shadows
    of our society, this bill addresses that. For those concerned about
    whether or not America will still have the capacity to assimilate the
    newly arrived, it addresses that issue too.
        This is a good piece of legislation. I'm sure some of you in the
    audience here will say: ``Well, it's not perfect; there are some aspects
    of the bill that I would like to see changed.'' On a piece of
    legislation this complicated, the question people have to answer is, are
    we going to sacrifice the good for the sake of the perfect? And my call
    to you is, is that we need to work on a comprehensive bill together.
    First of all, I know you're already doing that, so I'm really here to
    thank you.
        I want to address a couple of the key issues that people are
    addressing. If you want to kill a bill, then you just go around

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    America saying, ``This is amnesty.'' In other words, there are some
    words that elicit strong reactions from our fellow citizens. Amnesty is
    when a person breaks the law and is completely forgiven for having done
    so. This bill isn't amnesty. For those who call it amnesty, they're just
    trying to, in my judgment, frighten people about the bill.
        This bill is one that says, we recognize that you're here illegally,
    and there's a consequence for it. We can argue about the consequences,
    but you can't argue about the fact that there are consequences in this
    bill for people who have broken our law.
        People say, well, the bill is really--is not going to do much to
    enforce the border. Well, the truth of the matter is, certain aspects of
    the law don't come into be until certain border measures are taken. But
    I would remind people that you cannot fully enforce the border so long
    as people are trying to sneak in this country to do jobs Americans
    aren't doing. You can try, but doesn't it make sense to help the Border
    Patrol do their job by saying, if you're going to come and do a job,
    there is a legal way to do it, so you don't have to sneak across in the
    first place. If you're interested in border security, you've got to
    recognize that giving people a chance to come and work here on a
    temporary basis makes it more likely the border will be enforced.
        There are some who--I don't know if they say this explicitly, but
    they certainly allege or hint that probably the best way to deal with 11
    to 12 million people is to get them to leave the country. That's
    impossible. That's the kind of statement that sometimes happens in the
    political process aimed to inflame passion, but it's completely
    unrealistic. It's not going to happen. And, therefore, the fundamental
    question for those who disagree--and there's some good folks who
    disagree on both political parties, I might add--is, what's the
    solution?
        This bill is not amnesty, but it recognizes that it is impossible
    for this country to rout people out of our society and, quote, ``send
    them home.'' It's just not going to happen. And so good people have come
    together and derived a solution based upon compromises that addresses
    this problem in a humane way.
        I recently gave a speech at the Coast Guard Academy, and I was
    preceded by a young man, a Latino, who stood
    up as the head of his class, addressing his classmates and their
    families and the President of the United States. And he talked about his
    migrant grandfather, how proud the migrant grandfather would be. It
    struck me again what a remarkable country it is where a person with a
    dream for his immediate family and future family could come to this
    country, work hard, make sacrifices, and have his grandson address the
    President and his class.
        This has been the American story for decades and decades: waves of
    people looking for a better life, seeking something better for
    themselves and their families, willing to sacrifice and work hard. And
    we've got to understand--and great successes have resulted from that
    spirit. And this country must never lose sight that what has made us
    unique and, in my judgment, great is that we welcome people like that in
    a legal way, that throughout our history there have been the stories of
    people who have enriched our soul and lifted our spirit by coming to
    America.
        One of the great things about our country is, we've had the capacity
    to welcome people throughout our history. And we've become all
    Americans. We've got different backgrounds, different heritages. Our
    forefathers may have spoken different languages, but we're all American.
    We've been able to assimilate under the laws and traditions of our
    country. And as a result, we're a stronger nation for it.
        America must not fear diversity; we ought to welcome diversity. We
    ought to have confidence in what we have done in the past and not lose
    confidence about what we will do in the future.

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        And so I want to thank you all for joining on a really important
    piece of legislation. It's the right thing to do. It's the right
    approach to take. It is right to address a problem. It is right to work
    with people in both political parties. It is right to argue for what you
    believe and recognize that compromise might be necessary to move the
    bill along. And it is right to take political risk for Members of the
    United States Congress.
        I say--I don't think this is risky, frankly. I don't view this as
    risk reward. I frankly view it as doing what you ought to do. See,
    people ought to be running for office to do what's right for the United
    States of America. That's what I believe people run for office for. And
    so I want you to know that you've got an administration that looks
    forward to working with people. I will do my best to make sure that this
    debate does not denigrate into name-calling and finger-pointing. And
    we'll spend energy and time and effort to help you advance a really
    important piece of legislation for the good of this country.
        I've come by to say thanks. Chertoff
    and Gutierrez can tell you how the bill
    has gotten this far and what we see in the future. But I'm looking
    forward to signing a bill, and I think we will. I truly believe that
    when people with good will and good heart and with focus on helping this
    country come together, that we can get a good piece of legislation out.
    And I'm looking forward to signing it. I hope you'll be there when I do.
        God bless. Thank you.

    Note: The President spoke at 1:26 p.m. in Room 350 of the Dwight D.
    Eisenhower Executive Office Building. In his remarks, he referred to
    Ens. Marc A. Mares, USCG. He also referred to S. 1348.