Thursday, December 17, 2009
Friday, December 11, 2009
"Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America's Security and Prosperity" to be Introduced December 15
* Media Advisory*
December 11, 2009 * Media Contact *
Rebecca Dreilinger 202-225-8203
"Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America's Security and Prosperity"
to be Introduced December 15
(Washington D.C.) On Tuesday, December 15, Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL) will introduce new legislation, the Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America's Security and Prosperity Act of 2009 (CIR ASAP), to the U.S. House of Representatives. Gutierrez will be joined by members of many different faiths and backgrounds, including the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Black Caucus, Asian Pacific American Caucus and Progressive Caucus.
Who:
Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez (IL-4), Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Immigration Task Force
Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (NY-12), Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus
Rep. Yvette D. Clarke (NY-11), Whip of the Congressional Black Caucus
Rep. Mike Honda (CA-15), Chair of Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus
Rep. Lynn Woolsey (CA-6), Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus
Rep. Xavier Becerra (CA-31)
Rep. Judy Chu (CA-32)
Rep. Joseph Crowley (NY-7)
Rep. Ruben Hinojosa (TX-15)
Rep. Pedro R. Pierluisi (PR-At large)
Rep. Jared Polis (CO-2)
Rep. Jan Schakowsky (IL-9)
Rep. Jose E. Serrano (NY-16)
Other Members of Congress
What: Introduction of Comprehensive Immigration Reform Legislation
When: 12:30 pm, Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Where: Room 2220, Rayburn House Office Building
"We have waited patiently for a workable solution to our immigration crisis to be taken up by this Congress and our President," said Rep. Gutierrez. "The time for waiting is over. This bill will be presented before Congress recesses for the holidays so that there is no excuse for inaction in the New Year. It is the product of months of collaboration with civil rights advocates, labor organizations, and members of Congress. It is an answer to too many years of pain —mothers separated from their children, workers exploited and undermined security at the border— all caused at the hands of a broken immigration system. This bill says 'enough,' and presents a solution to our broken system that we as a nation of immigrants can be proud of."
Press should confirm their attendance with Rebecca Dreilinger at 202-225-8203 or via email at Rebecca.Dreilinger@mail.house.gov.
###
Rebecca Dreilinger | Press Secretary | Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez
2266 Rayburn House Office Building | Washington D.C. 20515
Tel: (202) 225-8203 | Fax: (202) 225 7810 | Rebecca.Dreilinger@mail.house.gov
December 11, 2009 * Media Contact *
Rebecca Dreilinger 202-225-8203
"Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America's Security and Prosperity"
to be Introduced December 15
(Washington D.C.) On Tuesday, December 15, Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL) will introduce new legislation, the Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America's Security and Prosperity Act of 2009 (CIR ASAP), to the U.S. House of Representatives. Gutierrez will be joined by members of many different faiths and backgrounds, including the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Black Caucus, Asian Pacific American Caucus and Progressive Caucus.
Who:
Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez (IL-4), Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Immigration Task Force
Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (NY-12), Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus
Rep. Yvette D. Clarke (NY-11), Whip of the Congressional Black Caucus
Rep. Mike Honda (CA-15), Chair of Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus
Rep. Lynn Woolsey (CA-6), Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus
Rep. Xavier Becerra (CA-31)
Rep. Judy Chu (CA-32)
Rep. Joseph Crowley (NY-7)
Rep. Ruben Hinojosa (TX-15)
Rep. Pedro R. Pierluisi (PR-At large)
Rep. Jared Polis (CO-2)
Rep. Jan Schakowsky (IL-9)
Rep. Jose E. Serrano (NY-16)
Other Members of Congress
What: Introduction of Comprehensive Immigration Reform Legislation
When: 12:30 pm, Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Where: Room 2220, Rayburn House Office Building
"We have waited patiently for a workable solution to our immigration crisis to be taken up by this Congress and our President," said Rep. Gutierrez. "The time for waiting is over. This bill will be presented before Congress recesses for the holidays so that there is no excuse for inaction in the New Year. It is the product of months of collaboration with civil rights advocates, labor organizations, and members of Congress. It is an answer to too many years of pain —mothers separated from their children, workers exploited and undermined security at the border— all caused at the hands of a broken immigration system. This bill says 'enough,' and presents a solution to our broken system that we as a nation of immigrants can be proud of."
Press should confirm their attendance with Rebecca Dreilinger at 202-225-8203 or via email at Rebecca.Dreilinger@mail.house.gov.
###
Rebecca Dreilinger | Press Secretary | Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez
2266 Rayburn House Office Building | Washington D.C. 20515
Tel: (202) 225-8203 | Fax: (202) 225 7810 | Rebecca.Dreilinger@mail.house.gov
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Transcript of Press Conference by President Felipe Calderon, President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Official White House transcript of the joint press conference held in Guadalajara by Calderon, Obama and Harper.
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
___________________________________________________________________________For Immediate Release August 10, 2009
PRESS CONFERENCE BY PRESIDENT OBAMA,PRESIDENT CALDERÓN OF MEXICO,AND PRIME MINISTER HARPER OF CANADA
Cabanas Cultural CenterGuadalajara, Mexico
11:15 A.M. (Local)
PRESIDENT CALDERÓN: (As translated.) Ladies and gentlemen, representatives of the media, national as well as international. The leaders from the United States, Canada and Mexico have completed two fruitful workdays for the benefit for our co-nationals. The leaders for North America share the vision and insight for the regional community that is safe, secure, and competitive, that can face successfully the challenges of the present and the future.
We coincide in pointing out that in an age marked by globalization, the challenges can only be overcome jointly -- thus the importance of keeping the dialogue, trust and cooperation amongst our three countries. Americans, Canadians, and Mexicans have reiterated that the values upon which our societies are founded are democracy, freedom, justice, and respect of human rights.
Our three nations have reiterated our decision to combat in the struggle of the transnational organized crime in order to bring about more security to our communities. The struggles we have led in Mexico for the rule of law and the security of our Mexican people forces us to stop the traffic of weapons and of money that go from north to south that strengthen and nourish organized crime gangs. The notion of responsibility, co-responsibility, accountability, the exchange of information, and the building of our institutions should be the guidelines for our cooperation.
In this international crisis context, the three states that make up the North American region have to take the leadership and foster and boost the necessary measures to recover our economic growth. In our task we have had to implement countercyclical measures in the three countries that have been put into action. And in a coordinated manner we can stabilize our economies and bring about trustworthiness and certainty in regard to the future of the global economy.
It is also necessary to build our financial international institutions such as the World Fund, the International Monetary Fund, which are fundamental to guarantee the flow of the financial resources. In the case of Latin America, the support that will enable us to recapitalize the Inter-American Bank for Development will be the best action for help and commitment in regard to the poor countries in the region on behalf of the North American countries.
I am certain that at the next G20 meeting that shall take place in Pittsburgh, United States, will be a great opportunity to build the necessary agreements to reform these organizations that are key in the recovery of our economies and our reprisal. I thank President Obama for fostering this meeting in Pittsburgh.
And likewise, the United States, Mexico and Canada have tools to restart our agreements. We recognize that it is essential to abide by NAFTA and to resolve the pending topics that impede us to reach greater regional competitiveness. And it is important to see how we are going to fulfill our commitments in regard to the environment and in regard to our labor domains linked to the commercial agreements, the trade agreements we have amongst our countries. I am convinced that only in tapping the advantages offered by our economic complementary -- (inaudible) -- in terms of interest -- labor, technology, and natural resources -- we shall be successful in a world that is ferociously competing.
At this summit we have reached important agreements such as boosting the standardization of the regulations and certifications of our products, as well as the sanitary procedures and -- fight for sanitary procedures that can be simplified, as well as increasing without any losses, increasing the economic competitiveness of our region. The objective is to have secure and efficient conditions. These procedures to be implemented with no bureaucratic or far-fetched red tape in our offices. And this will diminish, decrease the prices for the staples and food, and improve the competitiveness of our economies.
On the other hand, on the bilateral aspect, Mexico and the United States will launch modernization initiatives at our common borders with determined terms in order to promote the regional competitiveness actions. And Mexico commends and is pleased to say that we're going to inaugurate the first international bridge that is currently being built after so many years between the United States and Mexico.
The United States, Mexico and Canada have coincided in the importance to face the repercussions of pragmatic change. The cost is very high but the price we shall pay for lack of action is not to be calculated -- cannot possibly be calculated. We coincide that we have to foster the global agreement in Copenhagen and the instrumentation for a green fund that will finance and support mitigation and adaptation actions in regard to the global -- (inaudible) -- of climatic change. We need to make progress in regard to clean energies and technologies as well as the development of our carbon market in order to have a regional market.
North America has to be recognized as a responsible region and must set the example for the world in terms of environmental cooperation amongst countries with different levels of development.
Cooperation and solidarity amongst the North American region has to prevail at all moments, and thus it was demonstrated last April when our three countries faced the emergence of this new virus, H1N1. And working together, we showed our highest expressions of responsibility, accountability and transparency. And because we alerted timely the other regions in the hemisphere, they had the opportunity to implement preventive measures in order to abate the propagation of the virus and to avoid as far as possible its lethal repercussions.
H1N1, as we know, will be back this winter. We are getting prepared, all three countries, to face in a responsible manner this contingency and abate its impact for our people.
First Minister, Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen, at this summit the representatives of the United States, Canada, and Mexico have held an open and straightforward dialogue as countries that share values, that were to consolidate the right conditions for development and that have been able to found a successful society based on brotherly and responsible relationships. We believe in a North American region that is united, that is prosperous and wealthy, that is able to build a better future for the forthcoming generations.
And I want to give the floor now to Mr. Stephen Harper, Prime Minister for Canada.
PRIME MINISTER HARPER: (As translated.) Thank you, President Calderón. Thank you to the Mexican people for their hospitality, for their warmth. And thank you to President Obama for your straightforward exchanges -- so positive on our priorities. These -- (inaudible) -- consisted mainly of the economy, health, and security in the North American region, and focused on energy, environment, and climate change in regard to the North American economy and the global economy.
And thanks to the solid results in Canada with regard to financial regulations and fiscal actions -- have been very positive contribution. It's been important that since we are getting close to the G20 meeting, we have to underscore that countries have to go on with the reinforcement of their financial national/international institutions and to take the timely financial measures and to keep the markets open and to resist against protectionism.
In regard to the health domain and in regard to the influenza H1N1, it has been a threat, but the excellent cooperation amongst our three countries has helped to restrain the repercussions of this outbreak and we shall focus on that even more.
In regard to security, Canada recognizes the courageous commitment taken by President Calderón to combat organized crime in Mexico. We commend him for his efforts and his actions have touched all of us.
And we are still making the greatest efforts in Canada to find a pacific resolution for Honduras. We have to restate the democratic government and the rule of law in that country.
In regard to the energy and climate change, and since our economies are integrated, we have discussed about the importance of working together on a North American focus against climate change and in order to assure and guarantee a new international covenant that is efficient and truly global.
And to finish, Canada, the United States and Mexico are good neighbors and good friends, too. As sovereign countries in a modern world, we are independent and interdependent both, and I can't wait to see you at the G20 and to welcome you at the summit in Canada for the Leaders of North America next year.
(The Prime Minister repeats his remarks in English.) Thanks also to President Obama for candid and constructive exchanges on our priority issues. Those priority issues fitted into three broad categories: the economy; North American health and security; and energy, environment and climate change.
On the economy, because of Canada's strong record of financial regulation and fiscal management, we provided an informed voice at these meetings. As we approach the G20 summit in Pittsburgh, we continue to emphasize the countries must strengthen financial regulations and institutions, continue to implement timely economic stimulus, and maintain open markets to resist protectionism.
On North America health and security, we talked about our shared and effective response thus far to H1N1. It is a cross-border threat to all of us. The excellent cooperation among these -- our three countries was effectiveness in helping to manage the initial outbreak, and we will continue our cooperative efforts.
On security, Canada recognizes the courageous commitment of President Calderón in taking on the drug traffickers. We are supporting these efforts, as it is a shared challenge for all of us in North America.
Also, on international peace and security, Canada supports ongoing OAS efforts to find a peaceful resolution to the political crisis in Honduras. We must restore both democratic governance and the rule of law.
Sorry, excuse me, I just about missed energy and climate change. Given the integrated nature of our economies, we did talk at some length about the importance of working together on a North American approach to climate change, and also on doing our best to ensure that out of Copenhagen and going forward we reach an effective and genuinely international new world protocol on greenhouse gas emissions.
To conclude, Canada, the United States and Mexico are good neighbors and also good friends. As sovereign countries in a modern world, we are both independent and interdependent. I'm looking forward to seeing both President Calderón and President Obama at the G20; looking forward to hosting both of you next year at Canada's summit in our great country.
Thank you.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Good morning and buenos dias. I want to thank my great friend, President Calderón, for his hospitality and for hosting us at this important summit, as well as my good friend, Prime Minister Stephen Harper. And I want to thank the people of Guadalajara and Mexico for the incredible warmth they've shown us on this, my second trip to Mexico as President.
Here in Mexico, the word is "juntos." And in Canada it's "ensemble." But no matter how you say it, we come here today --three nations, one continent -- because of the challenges and opportunities that we will be facing together.
Like our magnificent surroundings today, this city could not be a more fitting venue. Here in Guadalajara we see all the richness of Mexico's heritage -- its arts, its architecture, its vitality and its culture. And we also see all the possibilities of Mexico's future -- the innovation, high-tech industries and entrepreneurship that makes this one of our hemisphere's most dynamic cities.
Here in Guadalajara we also see our continent coming together -- Mexicans, Canadians, Americans -- as tourists, as neighbors, educators and business partners; each bringing their unique traditions; each bound by mutual respect. Indeed, in the 21st century, North America is defined not simply by our borders, but by our bonds. And that is the spirit that defined the very productive summit that we had here today.
First, we agreed that we had to work together to restore our common prosperity. The global recession has cost jobs and hurt families from Toronto to Toledo to Tijuana. So we renew our commitment to work together in Ottawa, Washington and Mexico City. Building on our progress at the G8 and G20 summits, we agreed to continue to take aggressive, coordinated action to restore economic growth and create jobs for our workers, including workers in the North American auto industry.
Because so much of our common prosperity and millions of jobs depend on trade that flows across our borders -- billions of dollars worth of trade every day -- we reaffirmed the need to reject protectionism. We recommitted ourselves to the infrastructure investments, the common-sense regulations and intellectual property protections upon which trade thrives. We are among each other's largest trading partners. As we work together towards lasting prosperity, we need to expand that trade, not restrict it.
I would note that our common prosperity also depends on orderly, legal migration. All three of our nations have been enriched by our ties of family and community. I think of my own brother-in law who's Canadian. I think of the many Mexican Americans from Jalisco who found a home in Los Angeles and Texas and in my hometown of Chicago. At the same time, Americans, Mexicans and Canadians all expect their borders to be safe and secure. And that is why my administration will continue to work to fix America's broken immigration system in a way that is in keeping with our traditions of being both a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants.
And because our future prosperity also depends on clean energy economies, we built on our bilateral efforts to invest in renewable energy and green jobs, and we recommitted ourselves to the historic goals announced last month in Italy. Nations like the United States and Canada will take the lead by reducing emissions by 80 percent by 2050, and we will work with other nations to cut global emissions in half. Indeed, we made progress toward the concrete goals that will be negotiated at the Copenhagen climate change summit in December. And I again want to commend Mexico for its leadership in curbing greenhouse gas emissions and President Calderón for his innovative proposals to help developing countries build clean, sustainable economies.
Second, we reiterated our abiding commitment to the common safety and security of our people. In response to the H1N1 pandemic, our three governments have worked closely, collaboratively and responsibly. With science as our guide, we resolved to continue taking all necessary preparations and precautions to prepare for the upcoming flu season and protect the health of our people. And this challenge transcends borders and so must our response.
We also resolved to continue confronting the urgent threat to our common security from the drug cartels that are causing so much violence and death in our countries. As I've said on many occasions, I heartily commend President Calderón and his government for their determination and courage in taking on these cartels. And the President reaffirmed his government's commitment to transparency, accountability and human rights as they wage this difficult but necessary fight.
The United States will remain a full partner in this effort. We will work to make sure Mexico has the support it needs to dismantle and defeat the cartels. And the United States will also meet its responsibilities by continuing our efforts to reduce the demand for drugs and continuing to strengthening the security of our shared border -- not only to protect the American people, but to stem the illegal southbound flow of American guns and cash that helps fuel this extraordinary violence.
Third, we reaffirmed our abiding commitment to our common values, including peace, democracy and human rights. And in particular, we discussed the coup in Honduras. As has been mentioned, our three nations stand united on this issue. President Zelaya remains the democratically elected president. For the sake of the Honduran people, democratic and constitutional order must be restored. And we will continue to work with others, especially the Organization of American States, to achieve a negotiated and peaceful solution.
And finally, we pledged to continue all these efforts. I look forward to welcoming Prime Minister Harper to Washington in September. I look forward to welcoming both my friends at the G20 Summit in Pittsburgh, where I hope to reciprocate President Calderón's hospitality.
Our progress today is a reminder that no nation can meet the challenges of our time on our own. Our common aspirations can only be achieved if we work together. And that's what the nearly half-billion people in North America expect from us, so that's what we will do.
Thank you very much.
PRESIDENT CALDERÓN: (As translated.) Let's move on to the question-and-answer session. This will be one question per country, and we'll start off with Mexico.
Q Good afternoon. President Obama, there are certain questions about violation of human rights here in Mexico and all these problems fighting drug trafficking. Are you going to certify Mexico? And how can we move forward with the Merida Initiative? We've also been concerned about any attempt against Felipe Calderón's life. We know about certain threats and insecurity that prevails. This of course is certainly related to your country. We're concerned about the visa problem, too. What comments would you have regarding all these questions?
PRESIDENT OBAMA: I didn't get a translation on that one. (Laughter.) So it sounded like a very good question. (Laughter.) Here, I think it's coming. Go ahead.
Q We're concerned about the violation of human rights here in Mexico as we fight against drug trafficking. What are your concerns regarding this? And we'd also like to know if Mexico is going to be certified, and if you will help and apply resources for the Merida Initiative? We've also heard about some attempts against the life of President Felipe Hinojosa Calderón. Do you have any knowledge of this? And we're also concerned about national security, we're concerned about visas, et cetera. We'd like to know, is there any possibility that you might turn this around, that we might not have any limit on visas?
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, I'll just address the first two questions that seem to apply to the United States. Number one, we have been very supportive of the Merida Initiative and we will continue to be supportive. And we have already seen resources transferred, equipment transferred, in order to help President Calderón in what is a very courageous effort to deal with a drug cartel -- set of drug cartels that are not only resulting in extraordinary violence to the people of Mexico, but are also undermining institutions like the police and the judiciary system that, unless stopped, will be very damaging to the country.
Now, with respect to the conduct of this battle against the cartels, I have great confidence in President Calderón's administration applying the law enforcement techniques that are necessary to curb the power of the cartels, but doing so in a way that's consistent with human rights. And we discussed this in our bilateral meeting and I am confident that as the national police are trained, as the coordination between the military and local police officials is improved, there is going to be increased transparency and accountability and that human rights will be observed.
The biggest, by far, violators of human rights right now are the cartels themselves that are kidnapping people and extorting people and encouraging corruption in these regions. That's what needs to be stopped. That's what President Calderón is committed to doing, and that's what I'm committed to helping President Calderón accomplish as long as he is President of Mexico.
PRIME MINISTER HARPER: On the question of visas, it's important to understand the imposition of visa is due to one thing and one thing only, and that is the dramatic rise we have seen over the last few years, and this year in particular, in the number of bogus refugee claims being made from Mexico into Canada.
It's important to understand that this decision, first of all, has nothing to do with the actions of the Mexican government. The Mexican government has cooperated with us in efforts to stem this particular problem, to limit this particular problem. It continues to work with us in ways we might reverse it.
But the underlying problem, as I said to President Calderón and others, the underlying program -- problem is in the Canadian refugee laws. It is simply far too easy in Canada to make a bogus refugee claim as a way of entering the country. And we have to change that. It is unfair to those who are legitimate refugees. It is also unfair to the hundreds of thousands of people who are working through our immigration system to become immigrants to this country -- to our country.
So as I say, we will continue to work with Mexican authorities to try and limit this problem. But in the absence of legislative change, it is very difficult for our governments to control this other than through the imposition of visa. It is the only tool available to us right now. So we need additional tools from our parliament to stem the flow of bogus refugee claimants and also to have additional tools to deal with this kind of problem.
PRESIDENT CALDERÓN: (As translated.) Let me address these three topics, which are very important to us. First of all, my government has absolute categorical commitment with human rights. The struggle, the battle, the fight against organized crime is precisely to preserve the human rights of the Mexican people -- right to safety; to security; to personal safety and integrity; and the right to have a safe family; the right to work without being really molested or disturbed -- the struggle for the security and safety of the Mexican people.
Obviously we have a strong commitment to protect human rights of everybody, the victims and even of the criminals themselves. And this is how it has been, this is how it will continue to be, and this is how the federal police will act, the attorney generals and armed forces will act. In all of these cases, there has been a very scrupulous effort to try to protect human rights in all cases.
And anyone who says the contrary certainly would have to prove this -- any case, just one case, where the proper authority has not acted in a correct way, that the competent authorities have not punished anyone who has abused their authority, whether they be police officers, whether they be soldiers, or anyone else. We have a clear commitment with human rights. We have met this commitment, and we will continue to do so -- not because of any money that might come or come through the Merida Initiative or what's said in the Congress; because we have the strong commitment to human rights. And I certainly in a personal sense for several decades now, I have always had this commitment.
I have some details about what you have pointed out, but in any case, it certainly won't be the first or the last occasion on which we might hear something about an attempt against my personal -- about my life, my person. But once again, the governments can't stop -- (inaudible) -- we know that we are destroying their criminal organizations. We're hitting them hard. We're hitting at the heart of their organizations. We're making them back away. And they know that we're not only taking an initiative in the struggle against crime, but we are actually being able to protect and defend our country better as time goes by.
This is not a type of vengeance of getting back at anyone, but we want to make sure that Mexico is a safe place to live in, that we will be able to move forward in this. We're not just talking about this organization, but whether our basic objective is to provide security, safety for the Mexican people. This is something that Mexican people are entitled to; that their families and their children can go out into the streets, they can go out to play, they can go to school, they can make progress and to fulfill their aspirations; that Mexico be a free country, free of delinquency, free of violence; that Mexico will be a safe country. And in the struggle we're not going to be intimidated, nor are they going to put a stop to our efforts.
Once again, I certainly hope that Mexico's society recognizes all of the efforts we're making along these lines -- the police force who have been victims of attempts and of cowardly acts by the criminals; all the efforts carried out by Mexican marines, by soldiers, and the different attorney generals, all of this, because we are committed to this ideal to have a safe Mexico, to have a safe country. And these are values that we believe in, and it's certainly stronger than any threat that could be made against us about any type whatsoever.
So once again, we have had dialogues with Prime Minister Harper on several different occasions as we did on this occasion at the summit on the matter of visas for Mexican visitors. We've talked openly, frankly, and certainly Mexico, certainly, feels very bad about this decision, about this rejection, even though, of course, it is a privilege of the Canadian government to stipulate this. But it certainly gets in the way of a good relationship, of what Prime Minister Harper and I are doing to have good relations between our two countries. And the explanations that Prime Harper has mentioned, there certainly is a problem with bogus refugee claim problem, and this has led to an abuse of the system.
So we're going to try to work together to collaborate together. We're doing this here in Mexico to try to do away with the underlying causes of this abuse regarding the general system for receiving refugees in Canada.
Once again, for me it's very clear that as the President of Mexico, that I certainly have the obligation of ensuring that a specific topic on the bilateral agenda not deter reaching our full potential of other matters on the agenda.
And once again, here lies the great opportunity in this particular area of economic complementarities of the three countries' economies, and that this will take our whole region up to a higher state of competitiveness to the benefit of our people. These are the lines we've been working along, and I think we have been making great strides in this sense, and we certainly will continue to work along these lines in a frank and open way with Prime Minister Harper and President Obama.
Q Let me preface this by saying we only get one question each, so I will proceed to be longwinded. (Laughter.) It's actually a two-parter. And the first part is a question for the three leaders, primarily President Obama. And I'd appreciate it --
PRESIDENT CALDERÓN: Could you use the microphone?
Q And I would appreciate it if the Prime Minister, for the benefit of my Francophone colleagues, could answer in French, as well.
The "Buy American" caused considerable concern outside the United States. I am wondering what you discussed about "Buy American" at this meeting, and also what power you personally have to rescind this measure, and whether you intend to use that power.
Now, on a not completely related topic, health care has been an issue of tremendous debate in your country, and Canadians have looked on with some fascination as our health care system has become a political football in your country. I'd like to ask Prime Minister Harper and President Obama whether there are elements of the Canadian health care system, particularly the public model, which are worth emulating.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, first of all, with respect to the "Buy American" provisions, I want to assure you that your Prime Minister raises this with me every time we see each other. So that's important to note, that he is expressing I think his country's concerns.
I think it's also important to keep it in perspective that, in fact, we have not seen some sweeping steps toward protectionism. There was a very particular provision that was in our recovery package, our stimulus package. It did not extend beyond that. It was WTO-compliant. It was not something that I thought was necessary, but it was introduced at a time when we had a very severe economic situation and it was important for us to act quickly and not get bogged down in debates around this particular provision.
Prime Minister Harper and I have discussed this and there may be mechanisms whereby states and local jurisdictions can work with the provinces to allow for cross-border procurement practices that expand the trading relationship. But I do think it's important to keep this in perspective. This in no way has endangered the billions of dollars of trade taking place between our two countries. It's not a general provision, but it was restricted to a very particular aspect of our recovery package.
With respect to the health care debate, we are having a vigorous debate in the United States and I think that's a healthy thing. The reason it's necessary is because we are on a currently unsustainable path. We spend far more per person on health care than any nation on Earth. Our outcomes in terms of various measures of well-being don't rank us at the top. We're not doing better than a lot of other advanced developed countries that are spending much less per person.
Individual families are being bankrupted because of the lack of insurance. We've got 46-47 million people without health insurance in our country. And for those who do have health insurance, they are always at risk of private insurers eliminating their insurance because of a preexisting condition or because they lose a job or they have changed jobs.
So the final aspect of it is, is that our health care inflation is going up so rapidly that our federal budget simply can't sustain it -- nor can businesses that are increasingly having to make decisions whether they hire more workers or eliminate health care; whether they stop providing coverage or they force more costs on to their workers. So the whole system is not working well.
Now, how do we change it? When it's one-sixth of the U.S. economy, there are going to be a lot of opinions. And Congress has moved forward and we are closer to achieving a serious health reform package than we have been in the last 40 to 50 years. But there is going to continue to be a vigorous debate.
I've said that the Canadian model works for Canada; it would not work for the United States -- in part simply because we've evolved differently. We have a employer-based system and a private-based health care system that stands side by side with Medicare and Medicaid and our Veterans Administration health care system. And so we've got to develop a uniquely American approach to this problem.
This, by the way, is a problem that all countries are going to have to deal with at some level because if medical inflation continues at the pace that it's going, everybody's budgets are going to be put under severe strain.
And so what we're trying to do is make sure that we've got a sensible plan that provides coverage for everybody; that continues the role of the private marketplace, but provides people who don't have health insurance or have fallen through the cracks in the private marketplace a realistic and meaningful option. And we've got to do it in a way that also changes our delivery system so that we're not engaged in the kind of wasteful, inefficient medical spending that is so costly to us.
So I suspect that we're going to have continued vigorous debate. I suspect that you Canadians will continue to get dragged in by those who oppose reform, even though I've said nothing about Canadian health care reform. I don't find Canadians particularly scary, but I guess some of the opponents of reform think that they make a good boogeyman. I think that's a mistake. And I suspect that once we get into the fall and people look at the actual legislation that's being proposed, that more sensible and reasoned arguments will emerge, and we're going to get this passed.
Sorry to take so long on the question.
PRIME MINISTER HARPER: (As translated.) With respect to your first question, yesterday we discussed this problem. I'm very happy to recently see that it's an agreement among the provinces and the federation to have a common front with respect to this problem. There have been a lot of discussions among American and Canadian ministers, ministers of trade, and also our public officials. These talks will continue once I meet again with President Obama over the next couple of months.
With respect to health care, the only thing I could say is the Canadians certainly support their own system, and the rest is really an American debate.
And it's up to the provinces, for example, in Canada -- this whole thing about "Buy American", we had quite a bit of discussion on this, as President Obama has already mentioned, and I'm very glad to see that our provinces and the federal government have reached a recent agreement on this concern.
And once again, all of the cross-border procurement process is interesting. I think when our trade ministers have gotten together -- the ministers are talking about this as well -- and President Obama and I will discuss this topic at future meetings.
With respect to the debate on health care in the United States, as you well know, we as Canadians support our own system, but with respect to the rest of the question this is up to United States and once again we do have certain jurisdiction in the provinces.
Ginger.
Q To President Obama, given the fight that you're having to wage for health care, I wonder if you can tell us what you think the prospects are for immigration reform, for comprehensive immigration reform, which you've said is your goal; and whether you think that the blows you're taking now on health care and that the Democrats are likely to take around the midterm elections will make it hard, if not impossible, to achieve comprehensive immigration reform in this term -- and what you've told President Calderón about that?
President Calderón, I'd like to hear a little bit about your thoughts on Honduras. There have been some in Latin America who have said that the United States has not acted strongly enough to return President Zelaya to power. And I wonder if you could talk a little bit about how you feel about what the United States should be doing or could be doing to restore democratic order in Honduras.
And, Prime Minister Harper, a few months ago the Homeland Security Secretary of the United States went to Canada -- or at least aggravated Canadian sensibilities when she compared the Canadian border to the Mexican border. And I wonder what you think about that and how you feel about the United States using some of the enforcement strategies adopted on the southern border in the north. Thank you.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: That's all? (Laughter.)
Q That's all, Mr. President.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, first of all, Ginger, I don't know if you're doing some prognosticating about the outcome of the midterm elections, which are over a year away. I anticipate we'll do just fine. And I think when all is said on health care reform, the American people are going to be glad that we acted to change an unsustainable system so that more people have coverage, we're bending the cost curve, and we're getting insurance reforms so that people don't get dropped because of preexisting conditions or other issues.
So understand, though, I'm not acting based on short-term political calculations. I'm looking at what's best for the country long term. If I had been making short-term political calculations, I wouldn't be standing here as President, because nobody calculated that I could win the presidency.
With respect to immigration reform, I continue to believe that is also in the long-term interests of the United States. We have a broken immigration system. Nobody denies it. And if we continue on a path we're on, we will continue to have tensions with our Mexican neighbors; we will continue to have people crossing the borders in a way that is dangerous for them, unfair for those who are applying legally to immigrate; we're going to continue to have employers who are exploiting workers because they're not within a legal system, and so oftentimes are receiving less than minimum wage, or don't have overtime, or being abused in other fashion. That's going to depress U.S. wages. It's causing ongoing tensions inside the United States. It's not fair and it's not right, and we're going to change it.
Now, I've got a lot on my plate, and it's very important for us to sequence these big initiatives in a way where they don't all just crash at the same time. And what we've said is in the fall when we come back, we're going to complete health care reform. We still have to act on energy legislation that has passed the House, but the Senate, I'm sure, is going to have its own ideas about how it wants to approach it. We still have financial regulatory reform that has to get done because we don't want a situation in which irresponsible actions in the global financial markets can precipitate another crisis. That's a pretty big stack of bills.
Fortunately, what we've been able to do is to begin meeting with both Democrats and Republicans from the House and the Senate. Secretary Napolitano is coordinating these discussions, and I would anticipate that before the year is out we will have draft legislation along with sponsors potentially in the House and the Senate who are ready to move this forward, and when we come back next year, that we should be in a position to start acting.
Now, am I going to be able to snap my fingers and get this done? No. This is going to be difficult; it's going to require bipartisan cooperation. There are going to be demagogues out there who try to suggest that any form of pathway for legalization for those who are already in the United States is unacceptable. And those are fights that I'd have to have if my poll numbers are at 70 or if my poll numbers are at 40. That's just the nature of the U.S. immigration debate.
But ultimately, I think the American people want fairness. And we can create a system in which you have strong border security, we have an orderly process for people to come in, but we're also giving an opportunity for those who are already in the United States to be able to achieve a pathway to citizenship so that they don't have to live in the shadows, and their children and their grandchildren can have a full participation in the United States. So I'm confident we can get it done.
Oh, excuse me -- I know this wasn't directed at me, but I just want to make one quick point on Honduras, because you repeated something that I've heard before. The same critics who say that the United States has not intervened enough in Honduras are the same people who say that we're always intervening, and the Yankees need to get out of Latin America. You can't have it both ways.
We have been very clear in our belief that President Zelaya was removed from office illegally, that it was a coup, and that he should return. We have cooperated with all the international bodies in sending that message. Now, if these critics think that it's appropriate for us to suddenly act in ways that in every other context they consider inappropriate, then I think what that indicates is, is that maybe there's some hypocrisy involved in their approach to U.S.-Latin America relations that certainly is not going to guide my administration policies.
PRESIDENT CALDERÓN: (As translated.) Thank you. I will now make the most of this question. Now, in regard to migration, actually many of the people who work in the United States, who live in the shadow, live in the state or come from Jalisco, the state. These are people who have migrated in order to build a better future for their families. All of them, or most of them, have enormously contributed to the American society and the American economy, and it is unthinkable to see that the U.S., the main power, the main economic power in the world, without the contribution of the Mexican laborers and workers. This is not only a goodwill statement.
And during our meeting, we handed the delegations the benefits of North America and what the Mexican population represents in terms of age in regards to the total population in the U.S. The only way to have sustained progress throughout the North American region, especially, is allowing for the natural economic processes, for integration can happen, and this implies a labor mobility that cannot be determined by mandate or by decree./
This is what we have underscored with President Obama during this meeting, to keep on invoking the protection for the Mexican laborers, whatever their migration conditions are in the United States. And our highest commendment to the way President Obama has tackled this migration issue now.
Now, aside from defending the rights of the Mexican laborers in the United States, that one day instead of the Mexican people to have to leave their country because they're hungry or because they have to live their lives, we need an economic scheme where we have great investments coming from the U.S., hailing from Canada, and opening here the labor opportunities that the Mexicans so need.
I think President Barack Obama has responded to the topic on -- or to the issue on Honduras -- what we have discussed and agreed as what needs to be done to build the international actions that have been taken in order to reestablish democracy in Honduras; to strengthen the OAS and the delegation that is about to meet in Tegucigalpa -- to build the mediation actions that Oscar Arias, President for Costa Rica and Peace Nobel Prize, is carrying out in order to reestablish the constitutional law in Honduras.
This is not about a person or another. This is not about President Zelaya himself, or per se. It is about the constitutional and democratic life that ought to be defended in regard to the international legal framework that we have all agreed upon.
And once more, I coincide in the contradiction highlighted by President Obama -- those who have rejected or who have argued about the intervention of the United States in the region are those who now are claiming for the determination or the intervention of the U.S. in the region, no matter how legal this action might be.
So we have to resort to international law and international instances beyond the intervention of one single state -- or even more, the intervention of one single person -- to resolve such a dispute and such an issue. This is the path to be taken.
Today we congratulate ourselves that President Obama is leading the administration of the United States. But in the past that happened, but in the future we don't know who might be President next. And I am not of those who share the idea that the U.S. elected as the ultimate judge. And the ultimate resolve is through the intermediation of the affairs in our countries.
Yes, we have to open the path to the OAS, to the international organizations, to the regional group that we have formed, such as the Rio Group, such as the groups that are friends of North America, the countries that befriend Honduras, that befriend Central America, that befriend Guatemala. These countries must act on our own accounts, but in observance of the international law and the rules we have settled ourselves. We have to form a group of friends of Honduras that through -- with the help of Oscar Arias and with the help of the OAS and their corresponding actiona.
PRIME MINISTER HARPER: Just briefly, Minister Van Loan and Secretary Napolitano have been -- and our officials have been meeting regularly on management of our shared border. I think we have a good, cooperative relationship in that regard. There's obviously always work to be done.
Let me be very clear: From the Canadian perspective, we look at our border as a line between the two closest countries on Earth. We have the largest trading relationship of any two countries on Earth, but we also share security concerns. I've said repeatedly, I say again, there is no such thing as a threat to the security of the United States which is not a threat to the security of Canada. That is why Canada has been a steadfast ally of the United States in NAFTA and NORAD for many, many years.
We want to address all the same security issues that the United States wants to address, and we want to do so in a way that doesn't impede commerce and doesn't impede the great social interaction which has made our two countries so close over the decades.
I'm just going to also weigh in a little bit, as a friend of the United States, on a question that was posed to President Obama. If I were an American, I would be really fed up with this kind of hypocrisy -- you know, the United States is accused of meddling except when it's accused of not meddling, and the same types of -- same types who are demanding the United States to somehow intervene in Honduras, the same type of people who would condemn longstanding security cooperation between Colombia and the United States, which is being done for legitimate security and drug traffic reasons that is, frankly -- that are in the interests of all the countries of this hemisphere.
Mexico and Canada are involved in the mediation effort in supporting -- directly supporting the mediation effort of President Arias. I think the United States has been a -- very, very forcefully, articulated its concerns and its desired outcomes in that regard, and has been very supportive of those of us who are working in the multilateral process to deal with this serious issue in the hemisphere. So I think that's precisely what we want to see from the United States, is a United States that leads on issues of values, but is very supportive of multilateral attempts to deal with challenges that we all face.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Thank you.
PRESDIENT CALDERÓN: Thank you. Gracias, todos.
END 12:36 P.M. (Local)
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
___________________________________________________________________________For Immediate Release August 10, 2009
PRESS CONFERENCE BY PRESIDENT OBAMA,PRESIDENT CALDERÓN OF MEXICO,AND PRIME MINISTER HARPER OF CANADA
Cabanas Cultural CenterGuadalajara, Mexico
11:15 A.M. (Local)
PRESIDENT CALDERÓN: (As translated.) Ladies and gentlemen, representatives of the media, national as well as international. The leaders from the United States, Canada and Mexico have completed two fruitful workdays for the benefit for our co-nationals. The leaders for North America share the vision and insight for the regional community that is safe, secure, and competitive, that can face successfully the challenges of the present and the future.
We coincide in pointing out that in an age marked by globalization, the challenges can only be overcome jointly -- thus the importance of keeping the dialogue, trust and cooperation amongst our three countries. Americans, Canadians, and Mexicans have reiterated that the values upon which our societies are founded are democracy, freedom, justice, and respect of human rights.
Our three nations have reiterated our decision to combat in the struggle of the transnational organized crime in order to bring about more security to our communities. The struggles we have led in Mexico for the rule of law and the security of our Mexican people forces us to stop the traffic of weapons and of money that go from north to south that strengthen and nourish organized crime gangs. The notion of responsibility, co-responsibility, accountability, the exchange of information, and the building of our institutions should be the guidelines for our cooperation.
In this international crisis context, the three states that make up the North American region have to take the leadership and foster and boost the necessary measures to recover our economic growth. In our task we have had to implement countercyclical measures in the three countries that have been put into action. And in a coordinated manner we can stabilize our economies and bring about trustworthiness and certainty in regard to the future of the global economy.
It is also necessary to build our financial international institutions such as the World Fund, the International Monetary Fund, which are fundamental to guarantee the flow of the financial resources. In the case of Latin America, the support that will enable us to recapitalize the Inter-American Bank for Development will be the best action for help and commitment in regard to the poor countries in the region on behalf of the North American countries.
I am certain that at the next G20 meeting that shall take place in Pittsburgh, United States, will be a great opportunity to build the necessary agreements to reform these organizations that are key in the recovery of our economies and our reprisal. I thank President Obama for fostering this meeting in Pittsburgh.
And likewise, the United States, Mexico and Canada have tools to restart our agreements. We recognize that it is essential to abide by NAFTA and to resolve the pending topics that impede us to reach greater regional competitiveness. And it is important to see how we are going to fulfill our commitments in regard to the environment and in regard to our labor domains linked to the commercial agreements, the trade agreements we have amongst our countries. I am convinced that only in tapping the advantages offered by our economic complementary -- (inaudible) -- in terms of interest -- labor, technology, and natural resources -- we shall be successful in a world that is ferociously competing.
At this summit we have reached important agreements such as boosting the standardization of the regulations and certifications of our products, as well as the sanitary procedures and -- fight for sanitary procedures that can be simplified, as well as increasing without any losses, increasing the economic competitiveness of our region. The objective is to have secure and efficient conditions. These procedures to be implemented with no bureaucratic or far-fetched red tape in our offices. And this will diminish, decrease the prices for the staples and food, and improve the competitiveness of our economies.
On the other hand, on the bilateral aspect, Mexico and the United States will launch modernization initiatives at our common borders with determined terms in order to promote the regional competitiveness actions. And Mexico commends and is pleased to say that we're going to inaugurate the first international bridge that is currently being built after so many years between the United States and Mexico.
The United States, Mexico and Canada have coincided in the importance to face the repercussions of pragmatic change. The cost is very high but the price we shall pay for lack of action is not to be calculated -- cannot possibly be calculated. We coincide that we have to foster the global agreement in Copenhagen and the instrumentation for a green fund that will finance and support mitigation and adaptation actions in regard to the global -- (inaudible) -- of climatic change. We need to make progress in regard to clean energies and technologies as well as the development of our carbon market in order to have a regional market.
North America has to be recognized as a responsible region and must set the example for the world in terms of environmental cooperation amongst countries with different levels of development.
Cooperation and solidarity amongst the North American region has to prevail at all moments, and thus it was demonstrated last April when our three countries faced the emergence of this new virus, H1N1. And working together, we showed our highest expressions of responsibility, accountability and transparency. And because we alerted timely the other regions in the hemisphere, they had the opportunity to implement preventive measures in order to abate the propagation of the virus and to avoid as far as possible its lethal repercussions.
H1N1, as we know, will be back this winter. We are getting prepared, all three countries, to face in a responsible manner this contingency and abate its impact for our people.
First Minister, Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen, at this summit the representatives of the United States, Canada, and Mexico have held an open and straightforward dialogue as countries that share values, that were to consolidate the right conditions for development and that have been able to found a successful society based on brotherly and responsible relationships. We believe in a North American region that is united, that is prosperous and wealthy, that is able to build a better future for the forthcoming generations.
And I want to give the floor now to Mr. Stephen Harper, Prime Minister for Canada.
PRIME MINISTER HARPER: (As translated.) Thank you, President Calderón. Thank you to the Mexican people for their hospitality, for their warmth. And thank you to President Obama for your straightforward exchanges -- so positive on our priorities. These -- (inaudible) -- consisted mainly of the economy, health, and security in the North American region, and focused on energy, environment, and climate change in regard to the North American economy and the global economy.
And thanks to the solid results in Canada with regard to financial regulations and fiscal actions -- have been very positive contribution. It's been important that since we are getting close to the G20 meeting, we have to underscore that countries have to go on with the reinforcement of their financial national/international institutions and to take the timely financial measures and to keep the markets open and to resist against protectionism.
In regard to the health domain and in regard to the influenza H1N1, it has been a threat, but the excellent cooperation amongst our three countries has helped to restrain the repercussions of this outbreak and we shall focus on that even more.
In regard to security, Canada recognizes the courageous commitment taken by President Calderón to combat organized crime in Mexico. We commend him for his efforts and his actions have touched all of us.
And we are still making the greatest efforts in Canada to find a pacific resolution for Honduras. We have to restate the democratic government and the rule of law in that country.
In regard to the energy and climate change, and since our economies are integrated, we have discussed about the importance of working together on a North American focus against climate change and in order to assure and guarantee a new international covenant that is efficient and truly global.
And to finish, Canada, the United States and Mexico are good neighbors and good friends, too. As sovereign countries in a modern world, we are independent and interdependent both, and I can't wait to see you at the G20 and to welcome you at the summit in Canada for the Leaders of North America next year.
(The Prime Minister repeats his remarks in English.) Thanks also to President Obama for candid and constructive exchanges on our priority issues. Those priority issues fitted into three broad categories: the economy; North American health and security; and energy, environment and climate change.
On the economy, because of Canada's strong record of financial regulation and fiscal management, we provided an informed voice at these meetings. As we approach the G20 summit in Pittsburgh, we continue to emphasize the countries must strengthen financial regulations and institutions, continue to implement timely economic stimulus, and maintain open markets to resist protectionism.
On North America health and security, we talked about our shared and effective response thus far to H1N1. It is a cross-border threat to all of us. The excellent cooperation among these -- our three countries was effectiveness in helping to manage the initial outbreak, and we will continue our cooperative efforts.
On security, Canada recognizes the courageous commitment of President Calderón in taking on the drug traffickers. We are supporting these efforts, as it is a shared challenge for all of us in North America.
Also, on international peace and security, Canada supports ongoing OAS efforts to find a peaceful resolution to the political crisis in Honduras. We must restore both democratic governance and the rule of law.
Sorry, excuse me, I just about missed energy and climate change. Given the integrated nature of our economies, we did talk at some length about the importance of working together on a North American approach to climate change, and also on doing our best to ensure that out of Copenhagen and going forward we reach an effective and genuinely international new world protocol on greenhouse gas emissions.
To conclude, Canada, the United States and Mexico are good neighbors and also good friends. As sovereign countries in a modern world, we are both independent and interdependent. I'm looking forward to seeing both President Calderón and President Obama at the G20; looking forward to hosting both of you next year at Canada's summit in our great country.
Thank you.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Good morning and buenos dias. I want to thank my great friend, President Calderón, for his hospitality and for hosting us at this important summit, as well as my good friend, Prime Minister Stephen Harper. And I want to thank the people of Guadalajara and Mexico for the incredible warmth they've shown us on this, my second trip to Mexico as President.
Here in Mexico, the word is "juntos." And in Canada it's "ensemble." But no matter how you say it, we come here today --three nations, one continent -- because of the challenges and opportunities that we will be facing together.
Like our magnificent surroundings today, this city could not be a more fitting venue. Here in Guadalajara we see all the richness of Mexico's heritage -- its arts, its architecture, its vitality and its culture. And we also see all the possibilities of Mexico's future -- the innovation, high-tech industries and entrepreneurship that makes this one of our hemisphere's most dynamic cities.
Here in Guadalajara we also see our continent coming together -- Mexicans, Canadians, Americans -- as tourists, as neighbors, educators and business partners; each bringing their unique traditions; each bound by mutual respect. Indeed, in the 21st century, North America is defined not simply by our borders, but by our bonds. And that is the spirit that defined the very productive summit that we had here today.
First, we agreed that we had to work together to restore our common prosperity. The global recession has cost jobs and hurt families from Toronto to Toledo to Tijuana. So we renew our commitment to work together in Ottawa, Washington and Mexico City. Building on our progress at the G8 and G20 summits, we agreed to continue to take aggressive, coordinated action to restore economic growth and create jobs for our workers, including workers in the North American auto industry.
Because so much of our common prosperity and millions of jobs depend on trade that flows across our borders -- billions of dollars worth of trade every day -- we reaffirmed the need to reject protectionism. We recommitted ourselves to the infrastructure investments, the common-sense regulations and intellectual property protections upon which trade thrives. We are among each other's largest trading partners. As we work together towards lasting prosperity, we need to expand that trade, not restrict it.
I would note that our common prosperity also depends on orderly, legal migration. All three of our nations have been enriched by our ties of family and community. I think of my own brother-in law who's Canadian. I think of the many Mexican Americans from Jalisco who found a home in Los Angeles and Texas and in my hometown of Chicago. At the same time, Americans, Mexicans and Canadians all expect their borders to be safe and secure. And that is why my administration will continue to work to fix America's broken immigration system in a way that is in keeping with our traditions of being both a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants.
And because our future prosperity also depends on clean energy economies, we built on our bilateral efforts to invest in renewable energy and green jobs, and we recommitted ourselves to the historic goals announced last month in Italy. Nations like the United States and Canada will take the lead by reducing emissions by 80 percent by 2050, and we will work with other nations to cut global emissions in half. Indeed, we made progress toward the concrete goals that will be negotiated at the Copenhagen climate change summit in December. And I again want to commend Mexico for its leadership in curbing greenhouse gas emissions and President Calderón for his innovative proposals to help developing countries build clean, sustainable economies.
Second, we reiterated our abiding commitment to the common safety and security of our people. In response to the H1N1 pandemic, our three governments have worked closely, collaboratively and responsibly. With science as our guide, we resolved to continue taking all necessary preparations and precautions to prepare for the upcoming flu season and protect the health of our people. And this challenge transcends borders and so must our response.
We also resolved to continue confronting the urgent threat to our common security from the drug cartels that are causing so much violence and death in our countries. As I've said on many occasions, I heartily commend President Calderón and his government for their determination and courage in taking on these cartels. And the President reaffirmed his government's commitment to transparency, accountability and human rights as they wage this difficult but necessary fight.
The United States will remain a full partner in this effort. We will work to make sure Mexico has the support it needs to dismantle and defeat the cartels. And the United States will also meet its responsibilities by continuing our efforts to reduce the demand for drugs and continuing to strengthening the security of our shared border -- not only to protect the American people, but to stem the illegal southbound flow of American guns and cash that helps fuel this extraordinary violence.
Third, we reaffirmed our abiding commitment to our common values, including peace, democracy and human rights. And in particular, we discussed the coup in Honduras. As has been mentioned, our three nations stand united on this issue. President Zelaya remains the democratically elected president. For the sake of the Honduran people, democratic and constitutional order must be restored. And we will continue to work with others, especially the Organization of American States, to achieve a negotiated and peaceful solution.
And finally, we pledged to continue all these efforts. I look forward to welcoming Prime Minister Harper to Washington in September. I look forward to welcoming both my friends at the G20 Summit in Pittsburgh, where I hope to reciprocate President Calderón's hospitality.
Our progress today is a reminder that no nation can meet the challenges of our time on our own. Our common aspirations can only be achieved if we work together. And that's what the nearly half-billion people in North America expect from us, so that's what we will do.
Thank you very much.
PRESIDENT CALDERÓN: (As translated.) Let's move on to the question-and-answer session. This will be one question per country, and we'll start off with Mexico.
Q Good afternoon. President Obama, there are certain questions about violation of human rights here in Mexico and all these problems fighting drug trafficking. Are you going to certify Mexico? And how can we move forward with the Merida Initiative? We've also been concerned about any attempt against Felipe Calderón's life. We know about certain threats and insecurity that prevails. This of course is certainly related to your country. We're concerned about the visa problem, too. What comments would you have regarding all these questions?
PRESIDENT OBAMA: I didn't get a translation on that one. (Laughter.) So it sounded like a very good question. (Laughter.) Here, I think it's coming. Go ahead.
Q We're concerned about the violation of human rights here in Mexico as we fight against drug trafficking. What are your concerns regarding this? And we'd also like to know if Mexico is going to be certified, and if you will help and apply resources for the Merida Initiative? We've also heard about some attempts against the life of President Felipe Hinojosa Calderón. Do you have any knowledge of this? And we're also concerned about national security, we're concerned about visas, et cetera. We'd like to know, is there any possibility that you might turn this around, that we might not have any limit on visas?
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, I'll just address the first two questions that seem to apply to the United States. Number one, we have been very supportive of the Merida Initiative and we will continue to be supportive. And we have already seen resources transferred, equipment transferred, in order to help President Calderón in what is a very courageous effort to deal with a drug cartel -- set of drug cartels that are not only resulting in extraordinary violence to the people of Mexico, but are also undermining institutions like the police and the judiciary system that, unless stopped, will be very damaging to the country.
Now, with respect to the conduct of this battle against the cartels, I have great confidence in President Calderón's administration applying the law enforcement techniques that are necessary to curb the power of the cartels, but doing so in a way that's consistent with human rights. And we discussed this in our bilateral meeting and I am confident that as the national police are trained, as the coordination between the military and local police officials is improved, there is going to be increased transparency and accountability and that human rights will be observed.
The biggest, by far, violators of human rights right now are the cartels themselves that are kidnapping people and extorting people and encouraging corruption in these regions. That's what needs to be stopped. That's what President Calderón is committed to doing, and that's what I'm committed to helping President Calderón accomplish as long as he is President of Mexico.
PRIME MINISTER HARPER: On the question of visas, it's important to understand the imposition of visa is due to one thing and one thing only, and that is the dramatic rise we have seen over the last few years, and this year in particular, in the number of bogus refugee claims being made from Mexico into Canada.
It's important to understand that this decision, first of all, has nothing to do with the actions of the Mexican government. The Mexican government has cooperated with us in efforts to stem this particular problem, to limit this particular problem. It continues to work with us in ways we might reverse it.
But the underlying problem, as I said to President Calderón and others, the underlying program -- problem is in the Canadian refugee laws. It is simply far too easy in Canada to make a bogus refugee claim as a way of entering the country. And we have to change that. It is unfair to those who are legitimate refugees. It is also unfair to the hundreds of thousands of people who are working through our immigration system to become immigrants to this country -- to our country.
So as I say, we will continue to work with Mexican authorities to try and limit this problem. But in the absence of legislative change, it is very difficult for our governments to control this other than through the imposition of visa. It is the only tool available to us right now. So we need additional tools from our parliament to stem the flow of bogus refugee claimants and also to have additional tools to deal with this kind of problem.
PRESIDENT CALDERÓN: (As translated.) Let me address these three topics, which are very important to us. First of all, my government has absolute categorical commitment with human rights. The struggle, the battle, the fight against organized crime is precisely to preserve the human rights of the Mexican people -- right to safety; to security; to personal safety and integrity; and the right to have a safe family; the right to work without being really molested or disturbed -- the struggle for the security and safety of the Mexican people.
Obviously we have a strong commitment to protect human rights of everybody, the victims and even of the criminals themselves. And this is how it has been, this is how it will continue to be, and this is how the federal police will act, the attorney generals and armed forces will act. In all of these cases, there has been a very scrupulous effort to try to protect human rights in all cases.
And anyone who says the contrary certainly would have to prove this -- any case, just one case, where the proper authority has not acted in a correct way, that the competent authorities have not punished anyone who has abused their authority, whether they be police officers, whether they be soldiers, or anyone else. We have a clear commitment with human rights. We have met this commitment, and we will continue to do so -- not because of any money that might come or come through the Merida Initiative or what's said in the Congress; because we have the strong commitment to human rights. And I certainly in a personal sense for several decades now, I have always had this commitment.
I have some details about what you have pointed out, but in any case, it certainly won't be the first or the last occasion on which we might hear something about an attempt against my personal -- about my life, my person. But once again, the governments can't stop -- (inaudible) -- we know that we are destroying their criminal organizations. We're hitting them hard. We're hitting at the heart of their organizations. We're making them back away. And they know that we're not only taking an initiative in the struggle against crime, but we are actually being able to protect and defend our country better as time goes by.
This is not a type of vengeance of getting back at anyone, but we want to make sure that Mexico is a safe place to live in, that we will be able to move forward in this. We're not just talking about this organization, but whether our basic objective is to provide security, safety for the Mexican people. This is something that Mexican people are entitled to; that their families and their children can go out into the streets, they can go out to play, they can go to school, they can make progress and to fulfill their aspirations; that Mexico be a free country, free of delinquency, free of violence; that Mexico will be a safe country. And in the struggle we're not going to be intimidated, nor are they going to put a stop to our efforts.
Once again, I certainly hope that Mexico's society recognizes all of the efforts we're making along these lines -- the police force who have been victims of attempts and of cowardly acts by the criminals; all the efforts carried out by Mexican marines, by soldiers, and the different attorney generals, all of this, because we are committed to this ideal to have a safe Mexico, to have a safe country. And these are values that we believe in, and it's certainly stronger than any threat that could be made against us about any type whatsoever.
So once again, we have had dialogues with Prime Minister Harper on several different occasions as we did on this occasion at the summit on the matter of visas for Mexican visitors. We've talked openly, frankly, and certainly Mexico, certainly, feels very bad about this decision, about this rejection, even though, of course, it is a privilege of the Canadian government to stipulate this. But it certainly gets in the way of a good relationship, of what Prime Minister Harper and I are doing to have good relations between our two countries. And the explanations that Prime Harper has mentioned, there certainly is a problem with bogus refugee claim problem, and this has led to an abuse of the system.
So we're going to try to work together to collaborate together. We're doing this here in Mexico to try to do away with the underlying causes of this abuse regarding the general system for receiving refugees in Canada.
Once again, for me it's very clear that as the President of Mexico, that I certainly have the obligation of ensuring that a specific topic on the bilateral agenda not deter reaching our full potential of other matters on the agenda.
And once again, here lies the great opportunity in this particular area of economic complementarities of the three countries' economies, and that this will take our whole region up to a higher state of competitiveness to the benefit of our people. These are the lines we've been working along, and I think we have been making great strides in this sense, and we certainly will continue to work along these lines in a frank and open way with Prime Minister Harper and President Obama.
Q Let me preface this by saying we only get one question each, so I will proceed to be longwinded. (Laughter.) It's actually a two-parter. And the first part is a question for the three leaders, primarily President Obama. And I'd appreciate it --
PRESIDENT CALDERÓN: Could you use the microphone?
Q And I would appreciate it if the Prime Minister, for the benefit of my Francophone colleagues, could answer in French, as well.
The "Buy American" caused considerable concern outside the United States. I am wondering what you discussed about "Buy American" at this meeting, and also what power you personally have to rescind this measure, and whether you intend to use that power.
Now, on a not completely related topic, health care has been an issue of tremendous debate in your country, and Canadians have looked on with some fascination as our health care system has become a political football in your country. I'd like to ask Prime Minister Harper and President Obama whether there are elements of the Canadian health care system, particularly the public model, which are worth emulating.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, first of all, with respect to the "Buy American" provisions, I want to assure you that your Prime Minister raises this with me every time we see each other. So that's important to note, that he is expressing I think his country's concerns.
I think it's also important to keep it in perspective that, in fact, we have not seen some sweeping steps toward protectionism. There was a very particular provision that was in our recovery package, our stimulus package. It did not extend beyond that. It was WTO-compliant. It was not something that I thought was necessary, but it was introduced at a time when we had a very severe economic situation and it was important for us to act quickly and not get bogged down in debates around this particular provision.
Prime Minister Harper and I have discussed this and there may be mechanisms whereby states and local jurisdictions can work with the provinces to allow for cross-border procurement practices that expand the trading relationship. But I do think it's important to keep this in perspective. This in no way has endangered the billions of dollars of trade taking place between our two countries. It's not a general provision, but it was restricted to a very particular aspect of our recovery package.
With respect to the health care debate, we are having a vigorous debate in the United States and I think that's a healthy thing. The reason it's necessary is because we are on a currently unsustainable path. We spend far more per person on health care than any nation on Earth. Our outcomes in terms of various measures of well-being don't rank us at the top. We're not doing better than a lot of other advanced developed countries that are spending much less per person.
Individual families are being bankrupted because of the lack of insurance. We've got 46-47 million people without health insurance in our country. And for those who do have health insurance, they are always at risk of private insurers eliminating their insurance because of a preexisting condition or because they lose a job or they have changed jobs.
So the final aspect of it is, is that our health care inflation is going up so rapidly that our federal budget simply can't sustain it -- nor can businesses that are increasingly having to make decisions whether they hire more workers or eliminate health care; whether they stop providing coverage or they force more costs on to their workers. So the whole system is not working well.
Now, how do we change it? When it's one-sixth of the U.S. economy, there are going to be a lot of opinions. And Congress has moved forward and we are closer to achieving a serious health reform package than we have been in the last 40 to 50 years. But there is going to continue to be a vigorous debate.
I've said that the Canadian model works for Canada; it would not work for the United States -- in part simply because we've evolved differently. We have a employer-based system and a private-based health care system that stands side by side with Medicare and Medicaid and our Veterans Administration health care system. And so we've got to develop a uniquely American approach to this problem.
This, by the way, is a problem that all countries are going to have to deal with at some level because if medical inflation continues at the pace that it's going, everybody's budgets are going to be put under severe strain.
And so what we're trying to do is make sure that we've got a sensible plan that provides coverage for everybody; that continues the role of the private marketplace, but provides people who don't have health insurance or have fallen through the cracks in the private marketplace a realistic and meaningful option. And we've got to do it in a way that also changes our delivery system so that we're not engaged in the kind of wasteful, inefficient medical spending that is so costly to us.
So I suspect that we're going to have continued vigorous debate. I suspect that you Canadians will continue to get dragged in by those who oppose reform, even though I've said nothing about Canadian health care reform. I don't find Canadians particularly scary, but I guess some of the opponents of reform think that they make a good boogeyman. I think that's a mistake. And I suspect that once we get into the fall and people look at the actual legislation that's being proposed, that more sensible and reasoned arguments will emerge, and we're going to get this passed.
Sorry to take so long on the question.
PRIME MINISTER HARPER: (As translated.) With respect to your first question, yesterday we discussed this problem. I'm very happy to recently see that it's an agreement among the provinces and the federation to have a common front with respect to this problem. There have been a lot of discussions among American and Canadian ministers, ministers of trade, and also our public officials. These talks will continue once I meet again with President Obama over the next couple of months.
With respect to health care, the only thing I could say is the Canadians certainly support their own system, and the rest is really an American debate.
And it's up to the provinces, for example, in Canada -- this whole thing about "Buy American", we had quite a bit of discussion on this, as President Obama has already mentioned, and I'm very glad to see that our provinces and the federal government have reached a recent agreement on this concern.
And once again, all of the cross-border procurement process is interesting. I think when our trade ministers have gotten together -- the ministers are talking about this as well -- and President Obama and I will discuss this topic at future meetings.
With respect to the debate on health care in the United States, as you well know, we as Canadians support our own system, but with respect to the rest of the question this is up to United States and once again we do have certain jurisdiction in the provinces.
Ginger.
Q To President Obama, given the fight that you're having to wage for health care, I wonder if you can tell us what you think the prospects are for immigration reform, for comprehensive immigration reform, which you've said is your goal; and whether you think that the blows you're taking now on health care and that the Democrats are likely to take around the midterm elections will make it hard, if not impossible, to achieve comprehensive immigration reform in this term -- and what you've told President Calderón about that?
President Calderón, I'd like to hear a little bit about your thoughts on Honduras. There have been some in Latin America who have said that the United States has not acted strongly enough to return President Zelaya to power. And I wonder if you could talk a little bit about how you feel about what the United States should be doing or could be doing to restore democratic order in Honduras.
And, Prime Minister Harper, a few months ago the Homeland Security Secretary of the United States went to Canada -- or at least aggravated Canadian sensibilities when she compared the Canadian border to the Mexican border. And I wonder what you think about that and how you feel about the United States using some of the enforcement strategies adopted on the southern border in the north. Thank you.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: That's all? (Laughter.)
Q That's all, Mr. President.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, first of all, Ginger, I don't know if you're doing some prognosticating about the outcome of the midterm elections, which are over a year away. I anticipate we'll do just fine. And I think when all is said on health care reform, the American people are going to be glad that we acted to change an unsustainable system so that more people have coverage, we're bending the cost curve, and we're getting insurance reforms so that people don't get dropped because of preexisting conditions or other issues.
So understand, though, I'm not acting based on short-term political calculations. I'm looking at what's best for the country long term. If I had been making short-term political calculations, I wouldn't be standing here as President, because nobody calculated that I could win the presidency.
With respect to immigration reform, I continue to believe that is also in the long-term interests of the United States. We have a broken immigration system. Nobody denies it. And if we continue on a path we're on, we will continue to have tensions with our Mexican neighbors; we will continue to have people crossing the borders in a way that is dangerous for them, unfair for those who are applying legally to immigrate; we're going to continue to have employers who are exploiting workers because they're not within a legal system, and so oftentimes are receiving less than minimum wage, or don't have overtime, or being abused in other fashion. That's going to depress U.S. wages. It's causing ongoing tensions inside the United States. It's not fair and it's not right, and we're going to change it.
Now, I've got a lot on my plate, and it's very important for us to sequence these big initiatives in a way where they don't all just crash at the same time. And what we've said is in the fall when we come back, we're going to complete health care reform. We still have to act on energy legislation that has passed the House, but the Senate, I'm sure, is going to have its own ideas about how it wants to approach it. We still have financial regulatory reform that has to get done because we don't want a situation in which irresponsible actions in the global financial markets can precipitate another crisis. That's a pretty big stack of bills.
Fortunately, what we've been able to do is to begin meeting with both Democrats and Republicans from the House and the Senate. Secretary Napolitano is coordinating these discussions, and I would anticipate that before the year is out we will have draft legislation along with sponsors potentially in the House and the Senate who are ready to move this forward, and when we come back next year, that we should be in a position to start acting.
Now, am I going to be able to snap my fingers and get this done? No. This is going to be difficult; it's going to require bipartisan cooperation. There are going to be demagogues out there who try to suggest that any form of pathway for legalization for those who are already in the United States is unacceptable. And those are fights that I'd have to have if my poll numbers are at 70 or if my poll numbers are at 40. That's just the nature of the U.S. immigration debate.
But ultimately, I think the American people want fairness. And we can create a system in which you have strong border security, we have an orderly process for people to come in, but we're also giving an opportunity for those who are already in the United States to be able to achieve a pathway to citizenship so that they don't have to live in the shadows, and their children and their grandchildren can have a full participation in the United States. So I'm confident we can get it done.
Oh, excuse me -- I know this wasn't directed at me, but I just want to make one quick point on Honduras, because you repeated something that I've heard before. The same critics who say that the United States has not intervened enough in Honduras are the same people who say that we're always intervening, and the Yankees need to get out of Latin America. You can't have it both ways.
We have been very clear in our belief that President Zelaya was removed from office illegally, that it was a coup, and that he should return. We have cooperated with all the international bodies in sending that message. Now, if these critics think that it's appropriate for us to suddenly act in ways that in every other context they consider inappropriate, then I think what that indicates is, is that maybe there's some hypocrisy involved in their approach to U.S.-Latin America relations that certainly is not going to guide my administration policies.
PRESIDENT CALDERÓN: (As translated.) Thank you. I will now make the most of this question. Now, in regard to migration, actually many of the people who work in the United States, who live in the shadow, live in the state or come from Jalisco, the state. These are people who have migrated in order to build a better future for their families. All of them, or most of them, have enormously contributed to the American society and the American economy, and it is unthinkable to see that the U.S., the main power, the main economic power in the world, without the contribution of the Mexican laborers and workers. This is not only a goodwill statement.
And during our meeting, we handed the delegations the benefits of North America and what the Mexican population represents in terms of age in regards to the total population in the U.S. The only way to have sustained progress throughout the North American region, especially, is allowing for the natural economic processes, for integration can happen, and this implies a labor mobility that cannot be determined by mandate or by decree./
This is what we have underscored with President Obama during this meeting, to keep on invoking the protection for the Mexican laborers, whatever their migration conditions are in the United States. And our highest commendment to the way President Obama has tackled this migration issue now.
Now, aside from defending the rights of the Mexican laborers in the United States, that one day instead of the Mexican people to have to leave their country because they're hungry or because they have to live their lives, we need an economic scheme where we have great investments coming from the U.S., hailing from Canada, and opening here the labor opportunities that the Mexicans so need.
I think President Barack Obama has responded to the topic on -- or to the issue on Honduras -- what we have discussed and agreed as what needs to be done to build the international actions that have been taken in order to reestablish democracy in Honduras; to strengthen the OAS and the delegation that is about to meet in Tegucigalpa -- to build the mediation actions that Oscar Arias, President for Costa Rica and Peace Nobel Prize, is carrying out in order to reestablish the constitutional law in Honduras.
This is not about a person or another. This is not about President Zelaya himself, or per se. It is about the constitutional and democratic life that ought to be defended in regard to the international legal framework that we have all agreed upon.
And once more, I coincide in the contradiction highlighted by President Obama -- those who have rejected or who have argued about the intervention of the United States in the region are those who now are claiming for the determination or the intervention of the U.S. in the region, no matter how legal this action might be.
So we have to resort to international law and international instances beyond the intervention of one single state -- or even more, the intervention of one single person -- to resolve such a dispute and such an issue. This is the path to be taken.
Today we congratulate ourselves that President Obama is leading the administration of the United States. But in the past that happened, but in the future we don't know who might be President next. And I am not of those who share the idea that the U.S. elected as the ultimate judge. And the ultimate resolve is through the intermediation of the affairs in our countries.
Yes, we have to open the path to the OAS, to the international organizations, to the regional group that we have formed, such as the Rio Group, such as the groups that are friends of North America, the countries that befriend Honduras, that befriend Central America, that befriend Guatemala. These countries must act on our own accounts, but in observance of the international law and the rules we have settled ourselves. We have to form a group of friends of Honduras that through -- with the help of Oscar Arias and with the help of the OAS and their corresponding actiona.
PRIME MINISTER HARPER: Just briefly, Minister Van Loan and Secretary Napolitano have been -- and our officials have been meeting regularly on management of our shared border. I think we have a good, cooperative relationship in that regard. There's obviously always work to be done.
Let me be very clear: From the Canadian perspective, we look at our border as a line between the two closest countries on Earth. We have the largest trading relationship of any two countries on Earth, but we also share security concerns. I've said repeatedly, I say again, there is no such thing as a threat to the security of the United States which is not a threat to the security of Canada. That is why Canada has been a steadfast ally of the United States in NAFTA and NORAD for many, many years.
We want to address all the same security issues that the United States wants to address, and we want to do so in a way that doesn't impede commerce and doesn't impede the great social interaction which has made our two countries so close over the decades.
I'm just going to also weigh in a little bit, as a friend of the United States, on a question that was posed to President Obama. If I were an American, I would be really fed up with this kind of hypocrisy -- you know, the United States is accused of meddling except when it's accused of not meddling, and the same types of -- same types who are demanding the United States to somehow intervene in Honduras, the same type of people who would condemn longstanding security cooperation between Colombia and the United States, which is being done for legitimate security and drug traffic reasons that is, frankly -- that are in the interests of all the countries of this hemisphere.
Mexico and Canada are involved in the mediation effort in supporting -- directly supporting the mediation effort of President Arias. I think the United States has been a -- very, very forcefully, articulated its concerns and its desired outcomes in that regard, and has been very supportive of those of us who are working in the multilateral process to deal with this serious issue in the hemisphere. So I think that's precisely what we want to see from the United States, is a United States that leads on issues of values, but is very supportive of multilateral attempts to deal with challenges that we all face.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Thank you.
PRESDIENT CALDERÓN: Thank you. Gracias, todos.
END 12:36 P.M. (Local)
Janet Napolitano Focuses on Immigration Enforcement
An article from the New York Times discusses the shift in Janet Napolitano's position on immigration policies inherited from the Bush administration. In a speech at UT El Paso, the Secretary for Homeland Security emphasized the need to take a tough stance on enforcing existing immigration laws and, as has been lately the case, omitted any reference to the positive contributions made by immigrants.
The article can be read here.
The article can be read here.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
Latest Pew Report: Mexican Immigrants: How Many Come? How Many Leave?
The Pew Hispanic Center has just released a new study on the flow of Mexican immigration. A summary of the report is listed below, as well as a link to the complete document.
7.22.2009
Mexican Immigrants: How Many Come? How Many Leave?
By Jeffrey Passel and D'Vera Cohn
Mexican Immigrants: How Many Come? How Many Leave?
By Jeffrey Passel and D'Vera Cohn
The flow of immigrants from Mexico to the United States has declined sharply since mid-decade, but there is no evidence of an increase during this period in the number of Mexican-born migrants returning home from the U.S., according to a new analysis by the Pew Hispanic Center of government data from both countries.
The Mexican-born population in the U.S., which had been growing earlier in the decade, was 11.5 million in early 2009. That figure is not significantly different from the 11.6 million Mexican immigrants in 2008 or the 11.2 million in 2007.
The current recession has had a harsh impact on employment of Latino immigrants, raising the question of whether an increased number of Mexican-born residents are choosing to return home. This new Hispanic Center analysis finds no support for that hypothesis in government data from the United States or Mexico.
Mexico is by far the leading country of origin for U.S. immigrants, accounting for a third (32%) of all foreign-born residents and two-thirds (66%) of Hispanic immigrants. The U.S. is the destination for nearly all people who leave Mexico, and about one-in-ten people born there currently lives in the U.S.
Patterns of migration between the U.S. and Mexico are varied. Many immigrants come from Mexico to settle permanently, but large numbers also move both ways across the U.S.-Mexico border throughout the year, sometimes staying for only a few months, a pattern known as circular migration. Mexican-U.S. migration also tends to be seasonal, with larger northbound flows in the spring and summer and larger southbound flows in the fall and winter.
This report examines whether the recent annual volume of movement between the U.S. and Mexico has gone up or down in either direction. It relies on major national population surveys from Mexico and the U.S., as well as on U.S. Border Patrol apprehension figures. No single source presents the full picture of migration flows between the two countries, but the three sources examined here point to similar conclusions.
Data from population surveys taken in the U.S. and Mexico indicate that in recent years there has been a large flow of migrants back to Mexico, but the size of the annual return flow appears to be stable since 2006. Mexico's National Survey of Employment and Occupation estimates that 433,000 Mexican migrants returned home from February 2008 to February 2009. For the same period in 2007-2008, 440,000 did, compared with an estimated 479,000 from February 2006 to February 2007.
As for immigration to the U.S. from Mexico, data from several sources attest to recent substantial decreases in the number of new arrivals.
The inflow began to diminish in mid-decade, and has continued to do so through early 2009, according to an analysis of the latest available population surveys from both countries. This finding is reinforced by data from the U.S. Border Patrol showing that apprehensions of Mexicans attempting to cross illegally into the United States decreased by a third between 2006 and 2008.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Momias Migrantes Mantienen a Guanajuato
Un interesante reportaje sobre las momias de Guanajuato y los ingresos que generan al ser enviadas a museos de los Estados Unidos:
http://www2.esmas.com/noticierostelevisa/investigaciones-especiales/080287/momias-migrantes-mantienen-guanajuato
http://www2.esmas.com/noticierostelevisa/investigaciones-especiales/080287/momias-migrantes-mantienen-guanajuato
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Mexico's 2009 Midterm Elections: Winners and Losers
The Mexico Program of the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars has just issued a report on the July 5, 2009 midterm elections in Mexico, analyzing the outcomes of the election, the electoral fortunes of the major parties and the Felipe Calderon administration, and the implications for Mexican politics in the current context. The report, "Mexico's 2009 Midterm Elections: Winners and Losers", is written by Andrew Selee and Katie Putnam.
The full report can be read by clicking here.
The full report can be read by clicking here.
New Council on Foreign Relations Report on Immigration Policy
The Council on Foreign Relations has just released a new report on the issue of immigration reform. The study, "US Immigration Policy", was produced by an independent task force headed by Jeb Bush and Thomas F. McLarty III.
Below is an overview of the study:
Overview
“The continued failure to devise and implement a sound and sustainable immigration policy threatens to weaken America’s economy, to jeopardize its diplomacy, and to imperil its national security,” concludes a new Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) Independent Task Force co-chaired by former Florida governor Jeb Bush and former White House chief of staff Thomas “Mack” McLarty.
“The stakes are too high to fail,” says the report. “If the United States continues to mishandle its immigration policy, it will damage one of the vital underpinnings of American prosperity and security, and could condemn the country to a long, slow decline in its status in the world.” For this reason, the report urges: “The United States needs a fundamental overhaul of its immigration laws.”
U.S. Immigration Policy contends that America has reaped tremendous benefits from opening its doors to immigrants, as well as to students, skilled employees and others who may only live in the country for shorter periods of time. But it warns that “the continued inability of the United States to develop and enforce a workable system of immigration laws threatens to undermine these achievements.”
Directed by CFR Senior Fellow Edward Alden, the CFR-sponsored Independent Task Force on U.S. Immigration Policy reflects the consensus of a bipartisan group of eminent leaders in the fields of immigration policy, homeland security, education, labor, business, academia and human rights. The group urges Congress and the Obama administration to move ahead with immigration reform legislation that achieves three critical goals:
- Reforms the legal immigration system so that it operates more efficiently, responds more accurately to labor market needs, and enhances U.S. competitiveness;
- Restores the integrity of immigration laws through an enforcement regime that strongly discourages employers and employees from operating outside that legal system, secures America’s borders, and levies significant penalties against those who violate the rules;
- Offers a fair, humane, and orderly way to allow many of the roughly twelve million migrants currently living illegally in the United States to earn the right to remain legally.
According to the report, the high level of illegal immigration in the country is increasingly damaging to U.S. national interests—“[it] diminishes respect for the law, creates potential security risks, weakens labor rights, strains U.S. relations with its Mexican neighbor, and unfairly burdens public education and social services in many states.”
But it contends that “no enforcement effort will succeed properly unless the legal channels for coming to the United States can be made to work better.” Therefore, “the U.S. government must invest in creating a working immigration system that alleviates long and counterproductive backlogs and delays, and ensures that whatever laws are enacted by Congress are enforced thoroughly and effectively.”
The Task Force lays out a series of concrete, realistic recommendations for legislation and administrative reforms that would be part of an immigration policy that better serves America’s national interests:
- Comprehensive immigration reform: A new effort to pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill should be a first-tier priority for the Obama administration and Congress, and should be started without delay.
- Attracting skilled immigrants: The United States must tackle head-on the growing competition for skilled immigrants from other countries, and make the goal of attracting such immigrants a central component of its immigration policy. The report urges an end to the hard caps on employment-based immigrant visas and skilled work visas in favor of a more flexible system, the elimination of strict nationality quotas, and new opportunities for foreign students earning advanced degrees to remain in the United States after they graduate.
- National security: The Task Force calls for minimizing visa restrictions that impede scientific collaboration, noting that America’s long-term security depends on maintaining its place as a world leader in science and technology. The administration should also permit a broader effort by the U.S. military to recruit recent immigrants who are not yet citizens or green card holders, so as to bolster U.S. military capabilities.
- Employer enforcement: The Task Force supports a mandatory system for verifying those who are authorized to work in the United States, including a workable and reliable biometric verification system with secure documents. Tougher penalties should be levied against those who refuse to comply. It calls employer enforcement “the single most effective and humane enforcement tool available to discourage illegal migration.
- Simplifying, streamlining, and investing in the immigration system: Congress and the Obama administration should establish a high-level independent commission to make recommendations for simplifying the administration and improving the transparency of U.S. immigration laws. The government must redouble its efforts to reduce backlogs and other unnecessary delays by investing in the personnel and technology necessary for handling visa and immigration applications efficiently.
- Improving America’s image abroad: The administration and Congress should launch a comprehensive review of the current security-related restrictions on travel to the United States, with an eye toward lifting restrictions that do not significantly reduce the risk of terrorists or criminals entering the country.
- Border enforcement: The report favors the full implementation of the Secure Border Initiative to gain greater operational control of the country’s borders. It also calls for the expansion of “smart border” initiatives that use information technologies and targeting tools to help distinguish individuals who may pose a security risk to the United States while facilitating easier entry by the vast majority of legitimate visitors and immigrants.
- State and local enforcement: State and local police forces can and should be used to augment federal immigration enforcement capabilities, as long as this does not interfere with their core mission of maintaining safety and security in the communities they serve.
- Earned legalization: The Task Force favors a policy of earned legalization, not amnesty, for many of the illegal immigrants currently living in the United States. The DREAM Act, reintroduced in the 111th Congress, provides the right model by requiring that young people without status who wish to remain in the United States must attend college or perform military service and demonstrate good moral character in order to earn their eligibility for permanent residence.
- Upholding American values: The report identifies three areas that need immediate and serious review—incarceration policies, the severe penalties for minor immigration and criminal violations, and policies on refugees and asylees—and offers steps to address them, including:
o Expand the use of alternatives to detention, such as ankle bracelets or monitoring parolees.
o Allow greater discretion in implementing some of the penalties that were previously passed by Congress, such as the mandatory three, five, and ten year bars for many returning deportees.
o Create an office within the Department of Homeland Security that is responsible for refugee protection, and give greater priority for refugee issues throughout the Department of Homeland Security and in the White House.
The consensus on the bipartisan Task Force around these issues demonstrates that progress on immigration can be achieved. The report concludes that “the United States has the understanding, the capabilities, and the incentives to move forward and create a more intelligent, better functioning immigration system that will serve the country’s interests. It is time to get on with the job.”
The report can be accessed by clicking here.
Below is an overview of the study:
Overview
“The continued failure to devise and implement a sound and sustainable immigration policy threatens to weaken America’s economy, to jeopardize its diplomacy, and to imperil its national security,” concludes a new Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) Independent Task Force co-chaired by former Florida governor Jeb Bush and former White House chief of staff Thomas “Mack” McLarty.
“The stakes are too high to fail,” says the report. “If the United States continues to mishandle its immigration policy, it will damage one of the vital underpinnings of American prosperity and security, and could condemn the country to a long, slow decline in its status in the world.” For this reason, the report urges: “The United States needs a fundamental overhaul of its immigration laws.”
U.S. Immigration Policy contends that America has reaped tremendous benefits from opening its doors to immigrants, as well as to students, skilled employees and others who may only live in the country for shorter periods of time. But it warns that “the continued inability of the United States to develop and enforce a workable system of immigration laws threatens to undermine these achievements.”
Directed by CFR Senior Fellow Edward Alden, the CFR-sponsored Independent Task Force on U.S. Immigration Policy reflects the consensus of a bipartisan group of eminent leaders in the fields of immigration policy, homeland security, education, labor, business, academia and human rights. The group urges Congress and the Obama administration to move ahead with immigration reform legislation that achieves three critical goals:
- Reforms the legal immigration system so that it operates more efficiently, responds more accurately to labor market needs, and enhances U.S. competitiveness;
- Restores the integrity of immigration laws through an enforcement regime that strongly discourages employers and employees from operating outside that legal system, secures America’s borders, and levies significant penalties against those who violate the rules;
- Offers a fair, humane, and orderly way to allow many of the roughly twelve million migrants currently living illegally in the United States to earn the right to remain legally.
According to the report, the high level of illegal immigration in the country is increasingly damaging to U.S. national interests—“[it] diminishes respect for the law, creates potential security risks, weakens labor rights, strains U.S. relations with its Mexican neighbor, and unfairly burdens public education and social services in many states.”
But it contends that “no enforcement effort will succeed properly unless the legal channels for coming to the United States can be made to work better.” Therefore, “the U.S. government must invest in creating a working immigration system that alleviates long and counterproductive backlogs and delays, and ensures that whatever laws are enacted by Congress are enforced thoroughly and effectively.”
The Task Force lays out a series of concrete, realistic recommendations for legislation and administrative reforms that would be part of an immigration policy that better serves America’s national interests:
- Comprehensive immigration reform: A new effort to pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill should be a first-tier priority for the Obama administration and Congress, and should be started without delay.
- Attracting skilled immigrants: The United States must tackle head-on the growing competition for skilled immigrants from other countries, and make the goal of attracting such immigrants a central component of its immigration policy. The report urges an end to the hard caps on employment-based immigrant visas and skilled work visas in favor of a more flexible system, the elimination of strict nationality quotas, and new opportunities for foreign students earning advanced degrees to remain in the United States after they graduate.
- National security: The Task Force calls for minimizing visa restrictions that impede scientific collaboration, noting that America’s long-term security depends on maintaining its place as a world leader in science and technology. The administration should also permit a broader effort by the U.S. military to recruit recent immigrants who are not yet citizens or green card holders, so as to bolster U.S. military capabilities.
- Employer enforcement: The Task Force supports a mandatory system for verifying those who are authorized to work in the United States, including a workable and reliable biometric verification system with secure documents. Tougher penalties should be levied against those who refuse to comply. It calls employer enforcement “the single most effective and humane enforcement tool available to discourage illegal migration.
- Simplifying, streamlining, and investing in the immigration system: Congress and the Obama administration should establish a high-level independent commission to make recommendations for simplifying the administration and improving the transparency of U.S. immigration laws. The government must redouble its efforts to reduce backlogs and other unnecessary delays by investing in the personnel and technology necessary for handling visa and immigration applications efficiently.
- Improving America’s image abroad: The administration and Congress should launch a comprehensive review of the current security-related restrictions on travel to the United States, with an eye toward lifting restrictions that do not significantly reduce the risk of terrorists or criminals entering the country.
- Border enforcement: The report favors the full implementation of the Secure Border Initiative to gain greater operational control of the country’s borders. It also calls for the expansion of “smart border” initiatives that use information technologies and targeting tools to help distinguish individuals who may pose a security risk to the United States while facilitating easier entry by the vast majority of legitimate visitors and immigrants.
- State and local enforcement: State and local police forces can and should be used to augment federal immigration enforcement capabilities, as long as this does not interfere with their core mission of maintaining safety and security in the communities they serve.
- Earned legalization: The Task Force favors a policy of earned legalization, not amnesty, for many of the illegal immigrants currently living in the United States. The DREAM Act, reintroduced in the 111th Congress, provides the right model by requiring that young people without status who wish to remain in the United States must attend college or perform military service and demonstrate good moral character in order to earn their eligibility for permanent residence.
- Upholding American values: The report identifies three areas that need immediate and serious review—incarceration policies, the severe penalties for minor immigration and criminal violations, and policies on refugees and asylees—and offers steps to address them, including:
o Expand the use of alternatives to detention, such as ankle bracelets or monitoring parolees.
o Allow greater discretion in implementing some of the penalties that were previously passed by Congress, such as the mandatory three, five, and ten year bars for many returning deportees.
o Create an office within the Department of Homeland Security that is responsible for refugee protection, and give greater priority for refugee issues throughout the Department of Homeland Security and in the White House.
The consensus on the bipartisan Task Force around these issues demonstrates that progress on immigration can be achieved. The report concludes that “the United States has the understanding, the capabilities, and the incentives to move forward and create a more intelligent, better functioning immigration system that will serve the country’s interests. It is time to get on with the job.”
The report can be accessed by clicking here.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Mexican Election Results: PRI Wins Big
The pre-election public opinion polls were correct in predicting a significant gain by the PRI in yesterday's midterm elections in Mexico.
According to the latest estimates, the PRI has gone from 106 diputados (members of the lower house of Congress) to 237.
The PAN, President Felipe Calderon's party, has lost, going from 206 to 143 diputados.
The PRD, which had won the second highest number of votes and diputados in the 2006 presidential election, was by far the biggest loser, dropping from a current 127 to 72 diputados.
The PVEM is seeing an increase from 17 to 22 diputados.
It is generally regarded that with the support of the PVEM (often a political ally), the PRI will achieve a majority in the 500-member Chamber of Deputies, thus becoming a formidable barrier to President Calderon and once again positioning the PRI in line to regain control of the presidency in 2012.
The implications for Mexican politics as a whole, and for specific issues such as the rights of Mexicans in the US, the development of policies to improve conditions in the regions characterized by strong emigration, or the recovery of the Mexican economy remain to be seen.
According to the latest estimates, the PRI has gone from 106 diputados (members of the lower house of Congress) to 237.
The PAN, President Felipe Calderon's party, has lost, going from 206 to 143 diputados.
The PRD, which had won the second highest number of votes and diputados in the 2006 presidential election, was by far the biggest loser, dropping from a current 127 to 72 diputados.
The PVEM is seeing an increase from 17 to 22 diputados.
It is generally regarded that with the support of the PVEM (often a political ally), the PRI will achieve a majority in the 500-member Chamber of Deputies, thus becoming a formidable barrier to President Calderon and once again positioning the PRI in line to regain control of the presidency in 2012.
The implications for Mexican politics as a whole, and for specific issues such as the rights of Mexicans in the US, the development of policies to improve conditions in the regions characterized by strong emigration, or the recovery of the Mexican economy remain to be seen.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
A New Poll by El Universal: Parties Decline and the Undecided Vote Rises
The results of a new public opinion poll released by El Universal today reveal a significant decline of support for the established political parties in Mexico and a rise of the undecided vote, which has risen from 16.3% in January to 28.8% at the end of July.
The percentage of respondents who stated they would cast a protest (annulled) vote increased from 8.6% to 11.6% in the last two months.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Mexico's July 5 Election: New Poll by Consulta Mitofsky
In poll released today, Consula Mitofsky has found that the PRI will likely be the top vote getter in the upcoming July 5 election when the lower house of Congress is chosen. The PAN will come in second and the PRD a distant third.
PREFERENCIA ELECTORAL/ELECTORAL PREFERENCE
DIPUTADOS FEDERALES/FEDERAL CONGRESSMEMBERS
PROBABLES VOTANTES/LIKELY VOTERS
TRACKING POLL ROY CAMPOS www.consulta.com.mx 2009
PAN: 29.4%
PRI: 34.1%
PRD: 13.4%
OTRO/OTHER: 14.3%
NO DECLARA/UNDECLARED: 8.8%
PREFERENCIA ELECTORAL/ELECTORAL PREFERENCE
DIPUTADOS FEDERALES/FEDERAL CONGRESSMEMBERS
PROBABLES VOTANTES/LIKELY VOTERS
TRACKING POLL ROY CAMPOS www.consulta.com.mx 2009
PAN: 29.4%
PRI: 34.1%
PRD: 13.4%
OTRO/OTHER: 14.3%
NO DECLARA/UNDECLARED: 8.8%
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Mexico's Midterm Elections: The Resurgence of the PRI and the Rise of a Protest Vote Sentiment
On the 5th of July Mexico will have midterm election that will likely result in a rearrangement of the partisan relations in the renewal of the lower house of congress, the Camara de Diputados. In a disturbing parallel development, the electoral process is also being characterized by an alarming rise in the number of people who will presumably abstain from voting or cast a protest vote.
In the 2006 presidential election the PAN, with Felipe Calderon, and the PRD, with Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, won the most diputados, leaving the PRI in third place. However, in the current situation the public opinion polls are revealing a dramatic resurgence by the PRI (31% according to Consulta Mitofsky), a drop of the PAN to second place (26%), and the plummeting of the PRD to a distant third place (15%).
One of the key reasons for the resurgence of the PRI is the public unhappiness with the economic situation in Mexico, a condition that only worsened this year with the global economic crisis and the devastating economic impact of the influenza virus scare in Mexico. As an example, the Colegio Nacional de Economistas issued an estimate that the national economy would shrink by 10% this year. The PRI is perceived as the party that is best prepared to handle the current economic crisis. The improved public opinion is also strongly influenced by the strategy used by PRI party leaders over the past years to reposition themselves in the public eye, particularly in light of the confrontational relation between the PAN and the PRD. Critics would also argue that PRI governors have played a significant role in the process, spending lavishly in media campaigns, as in the case of Mexico State, whose governor (Enrique Peña Nieto) is already a strong conteder for the 2012 presidential election.
A worrysome new development that has drawn increasing attention from national and international authorities, political actors and observers/analysts is an apparent growing support among likely voters to either abstain from voting or casting annulled protest votes. This is interpreted as a protest vote against the existing political parties, which are faulted with the declining standard of living, rise in criminal activity, and a degrading of the national politics.
The protest vote's influence will largely depend on how great it actually is. Already, however, it should draw concern over how the rising interest is an alarming indication of the problems Mexico's emerging democracy faces.
For an interpretation of Mexico's current situation from a political actor who has played a fundamental role in the transition from state-party authoritarianism to emerging democracy, check out an interview with Cuauhtemoc Cardenas in Milenio Semanal.
In the 2006 presidential election the PAN, with Felipe Calderon, and the PRD, with Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, won the most diputados, leaving the PRI in third place. However, in the current situation the public opinion polls are revealing a dramatic resurgence by the PRI (31% according to Consulta Mitofsky), a drop of the PAN to second place (26%), and the plummeting of the PRD to a distant third place (15%).
One of the key reasons for the resurgence of the PRI is the public unhappiness with the economic situation in Mexico, a condition that only worsened this year with the global economic crisis and the devastating economic impact of the influenza virus scare in Mexico. As an example, the Colegio Nacional de Economistas issued an estimate that the national economy would shrink by 10% this year. The PRI is perceived as the party that is best prepared to handle the current economic crisis. The improved public opinion is also strongly influenced by the strategy used by PRI party leaders over the past years to reposition themselves in the public eye, particularly in light of the confrontational relation between the PAN and the PRD. Critics would also argue that PRI governors have played a significant role in the process, spending lavishly in media campaigns, as in the case of Mexico State, whose governor (Enrique Peña Nieto) is already a strong conteder for the 2012 presidential election.
A worrysome new development that has drawn increasing attention from national and international authorities, political actors and observers/analysts is an apparent growing support among likely voters to either abstain from voting or casting annulled protest votes. This is interpreted as a protest vote against the existing political parties, which are faulted with the declining standard of living, rise in criminal activity, and a degrading of the national politics.
The protest vote's influence will largely depend on how great it actually is. Already, however, it should draw concern over how the rising interest is an alarming indication of the problems Mexico's emerging democracy faces.
For an interpretation of Mexico's current situation from a political actor who has played a fundamental role in the transition from state-party authoritarianism to emerging democracy, check out an interview with Cuauhtemoc Cardenas in Milenio Semanal.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Video and Transcript of Remarks by President Obama After Meeting with Legislators to Discuss Immigration Reform
A video and the transcript of the statement made by President Obama yesterday after meeting with a bipartisan group of legislator to discuss immigration reform.
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
____________________________________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release June 25, 2009
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
AFTER MEETING WITH MEMBERS OF CONGRESS
TO DISCUSS IMMIGRATION
State Dining Room
3:17 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Hello, everybody. We have just finished what I consider to be a very productive meeting on one of the most critical issues that I think this nation faces, and that is an immigration system that is broken and needs fixing.
We have members of Congress from both chambers, from parties, who have participated in the meeting and shared a range of ideas. I think the consensus is that despite our inability to get this passed over the last several years, the American people still want to see a solution in which we are tightening up our borders, or cracking down on employers who are using illegal workers in order to drive down wages -- and oftentimes mistreat those workers. And we need a effective way to recognize and legalize the status of undocumented workers who are here.
Now, this is -- there is not by any means consensus across the table. As you can see, we've got a pretty diverse spectrum of folks here. But what I'm encouraged by is that after all the overheated rhetoric and the occasional demagoguery on all sides around this issue, we've got a responsible set of leaders sitting around the table who want to actively get something done and not put it off until a year, two years, three years, five years from now, but to start working on this thing right now.
My administration is fully behind an effort to achieve comprehensive immigration reform. I have asked my Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Secretary Janet Napolitano, to lead up a group that is going to be working with a leadership group from both the House and the Senate to start systematically working through these issues from the congressional leaders and those with the relevant jurisdiction. What we've heard is through a process of regular order, they would like to work through these issues both in the House and in the Senate.
In the meantime, administratively there are a couple of things that our administration has already begun to do. The FBI has cleared much of the backlog of immigration background checks that was really holding up the legal immigration process. DHS is already in the process of cracking down on unscrupulous employers, and, in collaboration with the Department of Labor, working to protect those workers from exploitation.
The Department of Homeland Security has also been making good progress in speeding up the processing of citizenship petitions, which has been far too slow for far too long -- and that, by the way, is an area of great consensus, cuts across Democratic and Republican parties, the notion that we've got to make our legal system of immigration much more efficient and effective and customer-friendly than it currently is.
Today I'm pleased to announce a new collaboration between my Chief Information Officer, my Chief Performance Officer, my Chief Technologies Officer and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Office to make the agency much more efficient, much more transparent, much more user-friendly than it has been in the past.
In the next 90 days, USCIS will launch a vastly improved Web site that will, for the first time ever, allow applicants to get updates on their status of their applications via e-mail and text message and online. And anybody who's dealt with families who are trying to deal with -- navigate the immigration system, this is going to save them huge amounts of time standing in line, waiting around, making phone calls, being put on hold. It's an example of some things that we can do administratively even as we're working through difficult issues surrounding comprehensive immigration.
And the idea is very simple here: We're going to leverage cutting-edge technology to reduce the unnecessary paperwork, backlogs, and the lack of transparency that's caused so many people so much heartache.
Now, we all know that comprehensive immigration reform is difficult. We know it's a sensitive and politically volatile issue. One of the things that was said around the table is the American people still don't have enough confidence that Congress and any administration is going to get serious about border security, and so they're concerned that any immigration reform simply will be a short-term legalization of undocumented workers with no long-term solution with respect to future flows of illegal immigration.
What's also been acknowledged is that the 12 million or so undocumented workers are here -- who are not paying taxes in the ways that we'd like them to be paying taxes, who are living in the shadows, that that is a group that we have to deal with in a practical, common-sense way. And I think the American people are ready for us to do so. But it's going to require some heavy lifting, it's going to require a victory of practicality and common sense and good policymaking over short-term politics. That's what I'm committed to doing as President.
I want to especially commend John McCain, who's with me today, because along with folks like Lindsey Graham, he has already paid a significant political cost for doing the right thing. I stand with him, I stand with Nydia Velázquez and others who have taken leadership on this issue. I am confident that if we enter into this with the notion that this is a nation of laws that have to be observed and this is a nation of immigrants, then we're going to create a stronger nation for our children and our grandchildren.
So thank you all for participating. I'm looking forward to us getting busy and getting to work. All right? Thank you.
Oh, and by the way, I hope everybody has got their Hawaiian shirts -- (laughter) -- and their mumus for our luau tonight.
END
Thursday, June 25, 2009
White House Press Release: Background Meeting with Members of Congress to Discuss Immigration Reform
The following is the press release the White House has issued regarding today's meeting between President Obama and the members of Congress regarding an immigration reform.
THE BRIEFING ROOM
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
_______________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release June 25, 2009
BACKGROUND ON MEETING WITH MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO DISCUSS IMMIGRATION REFORM:
The President and the Vice President will meet with a small group of Senate and House members from both sides of the aisle and both sides of the issue to discuss immigration reform in the State Dining Room at 2:00 PM today. The meeting is intended to launch a policy conversation by having an honest discussion about the issues and identifying areas of agreement and areas where we still have work to do, with the hope of beginning the debate in earnest later this year. There will be a pool spray at the bottom of the meeting.
Below is a list of expected attendees at today’s meeting on immigration reform:
ADMINISTRATION OFFICIALS:
Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano
Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis
Deputy Attorney General David Ogden
Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS:
Senator Richard Durbin
Senator John Cornyn
Senator Dianne Feinstein
Senator Lindsey Graham
Senator Jon KylSenator Patrick Leahy
Senator Mel Martinez
Senator John McCain
Senator Robert Menendez
Senator Chuck Schumer
Senator Jeff Sessions
Senator Arlen Specter
Representative Xavier Becerra
Representative Howard Berman
Representative Anh Cao
Representative James Clyburn
Representative John Conyers
Representative Joe Crowley
Representative Lincoln Diaz Balart
Representative Gabrielle Giffords
Representative Luis Gutierrez
Representative Sheila Jackson
LeeRepresentative Zoe Lofgren
Representative Adam Putnam
Representative Silvestre Reyes
Representative Loretta Sanchez
Representative Heath Shuler
Representative Lamar Smith
Representative Nydia Velazquez
Representative Anthony Weiner
THE BRIEFING ROOM
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
_______________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release June 25, 2009
BACKGROUND ON MEETING WITH MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO DISCUSS IMMIGRATION REFORM:
The President and the Vice President will meet with a small group of Senate and House members from both sides of the aisle and both sides of the issue to discuss immigration reform in the State Dining Room at 2:00 PM today. The meeting is intended to launch a policy conversation by having an honest discussion about the issues and identifying areas of agreement and areas where we still have work to do, with the hope of beginning the debate in earnest later this year. There will be a pool spray at the bottom of the meeting.
Below is a list of expected attendees at today’s meeting on immigration reform:
ADMINISTRATION OFFICIALS:
Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano
Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis
Deputy Attorney General David Ogden
Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS:
Senator Richard Durbin
Senator John Cornyn
Senator Dianne Feinstein
Senator Lindsey Graham
Senator Jon KylSenator Patrick Leahy
Senator Mel Martinez
Senator John McCain
Senator Robert Menendez
Senator Chuck Schumer
Senator Jeff Sessions
Senator Arlen Specter
Representative Xavier Becerra
Representative Howard Berman
Representative Anh Cao
Representative James Clyburn
Representative John Conyers
Representative Joe Crowley
Representative Lincoln Diaz Balart
Representative Gabrielle Giffords
Representative Luis Gutierrez
Representative Sheila Jackson
LeeRepresentative Zoe Lofgren
Representative Adam Putnam
Representative Silvestre Reyes
Representative Loretta Sanchez
Representative Heath Shuler
Representative Lamar Smith
Representative Nydia Velazquez
Representative Anthony Weiner
Rahm Emanuel: Immigration Reform Lacks Votes to Pass
Rahm Emanuel, Chief of Staff in the Obama administration, held a breakfast meeting with reporters today and revealed that the administration does not have enough votes in Congress to pass immigration reform this year.
The statement was made hours before Obama was scheduled to have the long-postponed meeting with key legislators to discuss immigration reform and a strategy to accomplish it.
According to the Washington Post, Emanuel stated: "If the votes were there you would not need to have the meeting. You could go to a roll call."
Emanuel further stated that while the votes did not yet exist to pass the reform this year, that it could be possible to get the process started.
The statement was made hours before Obama was scheduled to have the long-postponed meeting with key legislators to discuss immigration reform and a strategy to accomplish it.
According to the Washington Post, Emanuel stated: "If the votes were there you would not need to have the meeting. You could go to a roll call."
Emanuel further stated that while the votes did not yet exist to pass the reform this year, that it could be possible to get the process started.
Friday, June 19, 2009
NY Times: It Is Time for Immigration Reform and for Obama to Produce Results
In an editorial in today's edition, the New York Times chastizes President Barack Obama for not producing any concrete results on immigration to date. The newspaper argues that it is time to have immigration reform and that the president must produce results on this issue, as he owes it to the Latino voters who supported him in last year's election and, perhaps more importantly, he owes it to the millions of undocumented immigrants (and their families) who are suffering under the current system. The editorial recognizes that the reform requires the active support of legislators from both parties.
The editorial states:
"Now it’s Mr. Obama’s turn to lead the country to a different result. No one is expecting a huge bill to pass in a matter of weeks or even months. But there are things he can do right now that will underscore his seriousness.
"It boils down to a simple question: If you accept legalization for the undocumented as desirable and inevitable, then why continue to put them through hell?
"As they wait for a legalization bill, they are suffering under unjust laws, corrupt policing and a detention and deportation system that routinely suppresses their rights. American citizens who are Hispanic, and are all too frequently victims of racially-driven sweeps, are also suffering. Mr. Obama and his Homeland Security secretary, Janet Napolitano, must do much more to curb those excesses."
The complete editorial can be read here.
Earlier today, President Obama spoke at the Esperanza National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast. At this event with Hispanic faith leaders, the President repeated his commitment to achieve immigration reform. In his speech (which can be read here), he stated:
"The American people -- the American people believe in immigration, but they also believe that we can't tolerate a situation where people come to the United States in violation of the law, nor can we tolerate employers who exploit undocumented workers in order to drive down wages. That's why we're taking steps to strengthen border security, and we must build on those efforts. We must also clarify the status of millions who are here illegally, many who have put down roots. For those who wish to become citizens, we should require them to pay a penalty and pay taxes, learn English, go to the back of the line behind those who played by the rules. That is the fair, practical, and promising way forward, and that's what I'm committed to passing as President of the United States"
As predicted out by the NY Times, however, the President did not make any significant revelations about how he was going to pass immigration reform.
The editorial states:
"Now it’s Mr. Obama’s turn to lead the country to a different result. No one is expecting a huge bill to pass in a matter of weeks or even months. But there are things he can do right now that will underscore his seriousness.
"It boils down to a simple question: If you accept legalization for the undocumented as desirable and inevitable, then why continue to put them through hell?
"As they wait for a legalization bill, they are suffering under unjust laws, corrupt policing and a detention and deportation system that routinely suppresses their rights. American citizens who are Hispanic, and are all too frequently victims of racially-driven sweeps, are also suffering. Mr. Obama and his Homeland Security secretary, Janet Napolitano, must do much more to curb those excesses."
The complete editorial can be read here.
Earlier today, President Obama spoke at the Esperanza National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast. At this event with Hispanic faith leaders, the President repeated his commitment to achieve immigration reform. In his speech (which can be read here), he stated:
"The American people -- the American people believe in immigration, but they also believe that we can't tolerate a situation where people come to the United States in violation of the law, nor can we tolerate employers who exploit undocumented workers in order to drive down wages. That's why we're taking steps to strengthen border security, and we must build on those efforts. We must also clarify the status of millions who are here illegally, many who have put down roots. For those who wish to become citizens, we should require them to pay a penalty and pay taxes, learn English, go to the back of the line behind those who played by the rules. That is the fair, practical, and promising way forward, and that's what I'm committed to passing as President of the United States"
As predicted out by the NY Times, however, the President did not make any significant revelations about how he was going to pass immigration reform.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Responses to Obama's Postponement of Immigration Meeting
The National Immigration Forum blog has a collection of responses to the decision by President Barack Obama to postpone the June 17 meeting with legislative leaders. The information is available here.
National Day of Action for Immigrant Rights
Concerned over the course of the immigration reform process and the decision by President Barack Obama to postpone the meeting he had scheduled for June 17 to meet with a bipartisan group of legislators, many organizations will be holding vigils and other activities today, June 16.
Below you can find: 1) a press release from Reform Immigration for America, regarding the presidential decision to postpone the June 17 meeting and 2) a sample of the grassroots activites being carried out, in the case in San Francisco.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PRESS RELEASE from Immigration Reform FOR America Campaign
For Immediate Release Contact:
June 12, 2009 Katherine Vargas: (202) 641-5198
Shuya Ohno (202) 309-5645
WHITE HOUSE IMMIGRATION MEETING:
DELAY IS A MISTAKE, BUT NOT A SETBACK
Washington, DC – A meeting the President was slated to have Wednesday (June 17) at the White House with a bipartisan group of Congressional leaders on immigration reform has been delayed. The following is a statement by Ali Noorani, Executive Director of the National Immigration Forum, speaking on behalf of the Reform Immigration FOR America campaign, a recently launched national campaign to get comprehensive immigration reform passed this year.
We think delaying the meeting is a mistake. Momentum is building for comprehensive immigration reform with more and more Americans demanding solutions. The President is too smart not to move on immigration reform this year. We don’t see this as a signal that President Obama is stepping back from reform.
All the lights are green, with strong polling support for reform that helps strengthen the economy; hundreds of thousands of calls and faxes into Congressional offices generated by the campaign last week and more are expected next week; and both Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Speaker Nancy Pelosi saying the debate on comprehensive immigration reform is coming soon.
Reform that gets immigrants here illegally into the system and on the books, gets workers and employers all playing by the same set of rules, and reestablishes a legal immigration system that works so that people will use it – that is a winning political and policy proposition. Americans want their leaders in Washington to solve tough problems and immigration is no exception.
We fully expect the President’s strong leadership. Congress needs to act and delaying the White House meeting doesn’t change that.
# # #
For more information on the Reform Immigration FOR America Campaign, please
visit www.reformimmigrationforamerica.org or www.reformamigratoriaproamerica.org
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
***PRESS ADVISORY***
Contact: Lorena Melgarejo, SFOP at (415) 724-4987
President Obama postpones once more the WHITE HOUSE IMMIGRATION MEETING:
DELAY IS A MISTAKE, BUT NOT A SETBACK
San Francisco Faith Leaders and Families join a
NATIONAL DAY of ACTION for IMMIGRANT RIGHTS at a
Vigil and Press Conference at the Federal Building to tell President Obama that Immigrant Families can no longer Wait for Immigration Reform
WHO: Interfaith Clergy Leaders and Families from San Francisco
WHAT: Vigils and Actions will be held in major cities in the US to ask President Obama to keep his promise to immigrants of Comprehensive Immigration Reform this year. This call to action happened because the meeting the President was slated to have Wednesday (June 17th) at the White House with a bipartisan group of Congressional leaders on immigration reform has been delayed by the President for the second time. Advocates from around the nation want to let the President know that our immigrant families can no longer wait for Comprehensive Immigration Reform.
WHERE: 450 Golden Gate at the steps of the Federal Building
WHEN: TUESDAY, June 16th, 2009
4:00pm
For more information, contact Lorena Melgarejo at (415) 724-4987 or lorena@sfop.org
SFOP is a federation of 30 congregations, schools, and community centers representing more than 40,000 families in San Francisco . SFOP is a member of the PICO National Network.
Below you can find: 1) a press release from Reform Immigration for America, regarding the presidential decision to postpone the June 17 meeting and 2) a sample of the grassroots activites being carried out, in the case in San Francisco.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PRESS RELEASE from Immigration Reform FOR America Campaign
For Immediate Release Contact:
June 12, 2009 Katherine Vargas: (202) 641-5198
Shuya Ohno (202) 309-5645
WHITE HOUSE IMMIGRATION MEETING:
DELAY IS A MISTAKE, BUT NOT A SETBACK
Washington, DC – A meeting the President was slated to have Wednesday (June 17) at the White House with a bipartisan group of Congressional leaders on immigration reform has been delayed. The following is a statement by Ali Noorani, Executive Director of the National Immigration Forum, speaking on behalf of the Reform Immigration FOR America campaign, a recently launched national campaign to get comprehensive immigration reform passed this year.
We think delaying the meeting is a mistake. Momentum is building for comprehensive immigration reform with more and more Americans demanding solutions. The President is too smart not to move on immigration reform this year. We don’t see this as a signal that President Obama is stepping back from reform.
All the lights are green, with strong polling support for reform that helps strengthen the economy; hundreds of thousands of calls and faxes into Congressional offices generated by the campaign last week and more are expected next week; and both Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Speaker Nancy Pelosi saying the debate on comprehensive immigration reform is coming soon.
Reform that gets immigrants here illegally into the system and on the books, gets workers and employers all playing by the same set of rules, and reestablishes a legal immigration system that works so that people will use it – that is a winning political and policy proposition. Americans want their leaders in Washington to solve tough problems and immigration is no exception.
We fully expect the President’s strong leadership. Congress needs to act and delaying the White House meeting doesn’t change that.
# # #
For more information on the Reform Immigration FOR America Campaign, please
visit www.reformimmigrationforamerica.org or www.reformamigratoriaproamerica.org
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***PRESS ADVISORY***
Contact: Lorena Melgarejo, SFOP at (415) 724-4987
President Obama postpones once more the WHITE HOUSE IMMIGRATION MEETING:
DELAY IS A MISTAKE, BUT NOT A SETBACK
San Francisco Faith Leaders and Families join a
NATIONAL DAY of ACTION for IMMIGRANT RIGHTS at a
Vigil and Press Conference at the Federal Building to tell President Obama that Immigrant Families can no longer Wait for Immigration Reform
WHO: Interfaith Clergy Leaders and Families from San Francisco
WHAT: Vigils and Actions will be held in major cities in the US to ask President Obama to keep his promise to immigrants of Comprehensive Immigration Reform this year. This call to action happened because the meeting the President was slated to have Wednesday (June 17th) at the White House with a bipartisan group of Congressional leaders on immigration reform has been delayed by the President for the second time. Advocates from around the nation want to let the President know that our immigrant families can no longer wait for Comprehensive Immigration Reform.
WHERE: 450 Golden Gate at the steps of the Federal Building
WHEN: TUESDAY, June 16th, 2009
4:00pm
For more information, contact Lorena Melgarejo at (415) 724-4987 or lorena@sfop.org
SFOP is a federation of 30 congregations, schools, and community centers representing more than 40,000 families in San Francisco . SFOP is a member of the PICO National Network.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Paul Krugman's Article: "The Big Hate"
A very insightful article by Nobel Prize winning economist and NY Times columnist Paul Krugman discusses the increase in right wing extremist activity, the rise in hate speech, and the role of mainstream media outlets. The article would have been even more persuasive if Krugman had taken into account the anti-immigrant sentiment, policies, and actions that have become more intense and common in recent years. Today, immigrants are a preferred target of these hateful activities. The article can be read here.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Senator Harry Reid (D-Nevada) Wants Immigration Reform This Year
In a press conference held this past Thursday, 4 June, Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid emphasized that he considers comprehensive immigration reform one of this three priority issues, along with health reform and energy.
Reid has long held a pro-immigration reform position and in meetings with Nevada Mexican immigrant groups has confirmed his commitment to this issue.
In this most recent public statement, Reid states that he would like to see the reform happen this year.
Other senators interviewed in a Washington Post article reflect a more cautious approach. Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY), for example, considers that it may not happen until next spring.
A decisive moment that can define the type of reform that may be pursued and the process that will be followed will be June 17, when President Obama will meet with a select group of immigrant advocates and legislators to discuss a joint strategy.
The Washington Post article can be read here.
Monday, June 1, 2009
June 1: National Campaign to Reform Immigration for America
Today, hundreds of organizations throughout the United States are holding press conferences, informational events, processions, and other public events to launch a new effort on behalf of immigration reform in America.
Brought together by the belief that America's immigration system is broken and that a rational and humane alternative can be constructed, immigrant groups, churches, labor unions, chambers of commerce, business associations, elected officials, and others are uniting to raise public awareness and generate the legislative support to achieve a comprehensive reform.
A complete list of the sites with events and a map of these locations is available here.
Brought together by the belief that America's immigration system is broken and that a rational and humane alternative can be constructed, immigrant groups, churches, labor unions, chambers of commerce, business associations, elected officials, and others are uniting to raise public awareness and generate the legislative support to achieve a comprehensive reform.
A complete list of the sites with events and a map of these locations is available here.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Gov. Schwarzenegger's Proposed Budget Cuts Endanger Immigrant Health Programs
Health care advocates are organizing campaigns to defeat the proposed budget cuts that California Governor Arnold Schwarzenneger has made public in response to the extreme financial crisis that the Golden State faces. The proposed cuts would particularly harm low income families, immigrants and children - three extremely vulnerable sectors of our society in which Mexican Americans and other Latinos are over-represented.
The revised 2009 budget proposal presented by Governor Schwarzenneger on May 15 intends to address the $15.2 billion shortfall and also create a $2 billion reserve.
The proposed health care cuts total $2.2 billion. Among other things, the proposal would:
The revised 2009 budget proposal presented by Governor Schwarzenneger on May 15 intends to address the $15.2 billion shortfall and also create a $2 billion reserve.
The proposed health care cuts total $2.2 billion. Among other things, the proposal would:
- Rollback Medical eligibility levels, potentially excluding 1 million Californians from this service.
- Eliminate the Healthy Families program, denying coverage to over 1 million children.
- Limit health services to legal immigrants over 20 years old, potentially affecting over 80,000 people.
- Eliminate funding for several community clining programs, including those serving farmworkers and Native Americans.
- Eliminate maternal, child and adolescent health grants to local health jurisdictions.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Latinos: 22% of all US Children
A new report released by the PEW Hispanic Center provides the latest information on a topic that began to draw attention several decades ago, when experts began to do the first demographic projections that took into account the potential growth of the Mexican-origin and Latino populations. The study released today indicates that Hispanics are now 22% of all US children under 18 years of age - a dramatic increase over the 9% they represented in 1980. Furthermore, 52% of the 16 million Latino children are the sons or daughters of immigrants.
Among the pioneer scholars who carried out serious studies in the past is David Hayes-Bautista, co-author of the landmark study The Burden of Support: Young Latinos in an Aging Society (Stanford University Press, 1988), which examined the aging of California society, the decline in the birth rates on non-Latinos, the continuing demand for young workers to support the economy, and the roles young Latinos played in contemporary society, as well as different scenarios for California's future (from a best case scenario to a worst case scenario). The state-level analysis emphasized the need to prepare and educate the growing Latino youth because they would constitute the backbone of the future labor force and, hence, the well-being of California would rest on their contributions. Denying them access to education and other opportunities would only endanger California's future.
Another important study conducted by Hayes-Bautista focused on an historic landmark: according to a 2001 study examining county by county births, by the summer of that year the majority of the children being born in California were Latinos. As a consequence, the state would approach a new era in 2019, when these babies would turn into adults and be able to vote.
The new Pew report now draws attention to the importance of developing national-level policies to ensure that these children have fair access to the educational and other opportunities that will enable them to be productive members of society. Denying them access to education, health care and basic civil rights is certainly the wrong approach to follow.
Among the pioneer scholars who carried out serious studies in the past is David Hayes-Bautista, co-author of the landmark study The Burden of Support: Young Latinos in an Aging Society (Stanford University Press, 1988), which examined the aging of California society, the decline in the birth rates on non-Latinos, the continuing demand for young workers to support the economy, and the roles young Latinos played in contemporary society, as well as different scenarios for California's future (from a best case scenario to a worst case scenario). The state-level analysis emphasized the need to prepare and educate the growing Latino youth because they would constitute the backbone of the future labor force and, hence, the well-being of California would rest on their contributions. Denying them access to education and other opportunities would only endanger California's future.
Another important study conducted by Hayes-Bautista focused on an historic landmark: according to a 2001 study examining county by county births, by the summer of that year the majority of the children being born in California were Latinos. As a consequence, the state would approach a new era in 2019, when these babies would turn into adults and be able to vote.
The new Pew report now draws attention to the importance of developing national-level policies to ensure that these children have fair access to the educational and other opportunities that will enable them to be productive members of society. Denying them access to education, health care and basic civil rights is certainly the wrong approach to follow.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Employers Seek Reform: Immigration Works USA Summit in Washington, DC
Immigration Works USA, a national network of employers seeking to promote an immigration reform, is organizing a summit in Washington, DC on June 15, in an attemp to lobby Congress to move ahead with a reform.
The summit information is shown below, as posted on the organization's website:
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ImmigrationWorks USA invites you to a day-long strategy session and lobby day
STORMING THE HILL
Join the business grassroots campaign for immigration reform
WHEN June 15, 2009, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
WHERE Marriott Washington, 1221 22nd Street, NW
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
Employers for immigration reformBusiness owners who rely on immigrant workersTrade association executives who represent themCitizens who believe immigrants are good for America
Mounting evidence suggests that the administration and Congress will make a push to pass immigration reform in 2009, despite the recession. But even with large Democratic majorities in Congress, there can be no hope of enacting new law without Republicans and centrist Democrats. And there can be no hope of mobilizing these lawmakers without vocal support from employers who hire immigrants.
Business owners from across America are gathering in Washington to launch a national advocacy campaign. We’ll discuss our must-haves – what do employers need in a bill? We’ll coordinate strategy – grasstops tactics in the states and a national grassroots mobilization, using the new media to build an army of engaged, informed employers ready to make their views known to Congress.
It’s time to launch a national campaign – business owners standing up for what we need in an immigration bill.
Come to Washington to plan. Come to Washington to build. Come to Washington to make your voice heard with like-minded others from across America.
If you are INTERESTED IN ATTENDING, please email sreagan@ImmigrationWorksUSA.org.
We encourage you to STAY OVER in Washington and meet with your representatives on June 16.
To RESERVE A ROOM at the Marriott Washington, call 800 393-3053.
The summit information is shown below, as posted on the organization's website:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ImmigrationWorks USA invites you to a day-long strategy session and lobby day
STORMING THE HILL
Join the business grassroots campaign for immigration reform
WHEN June 15, 2009, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
WHERE Marriott Washington, 1221 22nd Street, NW
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
Employers for immigration reformBusiness owners who rely on immigrant workersTrade association executives who represent themCitizens who believe immigrants are good for America
Mounting evidence suggests that the administration and Congress will make a push to pass immigration reform in 2009, despite the recession. But even with large Democratic majorities in Congress, there can be no hope of enacting new law without Republicans and centrist Democrats. And there can be no hope of mobilizing these lawmakers without vocal support from employers who hire immigrants.
Business owners from across America are gathering in Washington to launch a national advocacy campaign. We’ll discuss our must-haves – what do employers need in a bill? We’ll coordinate strategy – grasstops tactics in the states and a national grassroots mobilization, using the new media to build an army of engaged, informed employers ready to make their views known to Congress.
It’s time to launch a national campaign – business owners standing up for what we need in an immigration bill.
Come to Washington to plan. Come to Washington to build. Come to Washington to make your voice heard with like-minded others from across America.
If you are INTERESTED IN ATTENDING, please email sreagan@ImmigrationWorksUSA.org.
We encourage you to STAY OVER in Washington and meet with your representatives on June 16.
To RESERVE A ROOM at the Marriott Washington, call 800 393-3053.
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