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Pelosi Remarks at House Democrats' Immigration Press Conference Today

November 13, 2014

Contact: Drew Hammill, 202-226-7616

Washington, D.C. – Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi delivered remarks today at the House Democrats' press conference on immigration, urging the President to use executive action that lies within his presidential authority to help the millions of people who face deportation:

"Thank you, Congressman Gutierrez, thank you Congresswoman Lofgren, all of my colleagues here. This is very interesting. As you have seen, we have put forth our op-ed on this subject that talks about the authority the President has and the precedent that have been established by so many presidents. But I want to make a little different point here that is in our op-ed. Not only did President Reagan and President Bush act on the subject of immigration, I think it's important – they didn't do it in the absence of Congressional action, they did it to improve Congressional action.

"Let me just read this to be succinct: ‘Following the 1986 Reform and Control Act, Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush took bold action to protect spouses and children of people who received status under that law' – under the immigration law of 1986. ‘Although Congress explicitly chose not to grant status to these people – an estimated 1.5 million people – Presidents Reagan and Bush recognized that it was not in the national interest to separate families.' The bill only protected one person in the family. The Presidents said that was not fair, and it was not in the national interest to separate families. Using their authority to establish a Family Fairness program, they offered spouses and children indefinite protection from deportation and work authorization.

"So we're saying: Let's act. Let's act legislatively. Let's get the job done. Take up the Senate bill. Take up something. President Obama is saying: It's better to have legislation, law, statute, than to have an executive order. But President Reagan and President Bush said: You backed it, I don't think it's good enough; and by executive order, we're going to protect the children and the family members with the Family Fairness initiative that they had.

"So, I don't think there's any question that the President can act administratively, take executive action. Just as we should act legislatively. We each have our roles in government. So we want to make sure that the public is aware of the fact that every president in the lifetime of most people here in this room anyway that I'm looking at, presidents have taken this action in the national interest; in the absence of Congressional action and the presence of Congressional action.

"So thank you, Congressman Gutierrez, for your relentless, dissatisfied, persistent leadership. Thank you Congresswoman Lofgren for being such a knowledgeable leader on this as well. She's an immigration lawyer; she taught immigration law; she chaired the immigration committee. Both of them provide magnificent leadership for us. I'm honored to join them and my colleagues in saying to the President: please Mr. President, use your power. Thank you."

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