The new year began with renewed hope that 2014 would bring action on immigration reform. In January, the White House announced that it was getting behind a new initiative to push for Comprehensive Immigration Reform and, in conversations with Senate Democrats, the President confided his belief that House Republicans would take on immigration reform, including a path to legalization, if not citizenship. In his State of the Union Address the President echoed the same sentiment, telling the American people: “Let’s get it done. It’s time”.
While House Republicans have in recent years resisted CIR, by the end of January, House Speaker John Boehner, with his lieutenant Eric Cantor at his side, announced a set of principles – supposedly agreed to by the Republican caucus – which would guide the House leadership towards immigration reform. Whether these proposals were simply intended to gain political points or whether they were really an attempt to find common ground, the sense of hope and possibility did not last long.
Within days of Speaker Boehner’s announcement, the restrictionist right and the Tea Party had mobilized. Using the “no amnesty” mantra, anti-Obama fervor and xenophobic fear tactics to halt any talk of immigration reform. By the beginning of February, Speaker Boehner had reversed course, shelving the issue and telling his caucus that he could not move forward with a comprehensive overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws “until President Obama won the trust of the Republican conference.”
Of course, this will never happen. And this means that at least another year will pass before the House leadership – hoping for a shift in power in the Senate – will take up the challenge of passing immigration reform. In the meantime, and predictably, this reversal has not been taken lightly by immigration activists, who are now firing up their own political and media operations to pressure Republican lawmakers to enact CIR. By targeting Republicans in swing districts with Latino constituencies, advocacy groups are making their voices heard, reminding Republicans that the polls and demographics are against them, and that they can no longer ignore the electoral impact of America’s first and second-generation immigrants.
This is the time for politicians to remember that they serve the people. The people elect them into office, and the people must hold them accountable. To show your support for comprehensive immigration reform this year, please click here to contact your Congressman and Senator.