Washington, DC (January 26, 2018) Congressman Steve Pearce today released the following statement after the White House released priorities and principles for immigration reform and border security:

“As we know firsthand in New Mexico, our immigration system is broken. We need pragmatic reforms to ensure flaws and failures intertwined throughout the system do not continue for generations to come. It is the responsibility of Congress to find a solution and we have made serious progress in bipartisan negotiations to get to where we are today.

We need a solution that provides certainty for children who were brought to this nation without fault of their own, while respecting those who followed the law and immigration policies we have in place. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues to fix our nation’s antiquated and vulnerable immigration system.
This is a process that requires everyone to work and negotiate details. Walking away from the process and threatening a shutdown is a sign of a lack of seriousness about an issue that deeply and personally affects many. We all need to work forward for a negotiated solution.”
Background
The White House released a framework for immigration reform and border security that includes legalization for recipients and those eligible for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Program. It also ends the Visa Lottery and Repurpose Visas. Lastly, this framework includes a plan to secure the border, including a $25 billion trust fund for the border wall.