An issue that once polarized the United States, immigration reform is now enjoying an increasing amount of bipartisan support, with Democrats and Republicans alike negotiating a pathway to legalization and maybe even citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants who already call the US home.
Congress is now on recess for spring break, and US President Barack Obama has been urging both the Senate and the House of Representatives to conclude the task of drafting fully comprehensive immigration reform as soon as possible, asking both of the major political parties to capitalize on the recent progress that has been made in order to reach a deal. “We are making progress,” Obama says, “but we’ve got to finish the job, because this issue is not new. Everybody pretty much knows what’s broken; everybody knows how to fix it.”
After many years of often contentious debate over how to deal with the 11 million illegal immigrants who live in the United States, support for a bipartisan deal has been increasing ever since the November re-election of President Obama, with even Republican Rand Paul, a key player in the uber-conservative Tea Party movement, having spoken out in favor of legalization – a shift in attitude that could prove to be game-changing for the Republican Party as a whole.
“Prudence, compassion and thrift all point us toward the same goal – bringing these workers out of the shadows and into becoming and being taxpaying members of society,” Paul remarked to the US Chamber of Commerce.