Congressional Town Halls Show Support for Immigration Reform

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For Immediate Release August 14, 2013 Media Contact: Judy Pino, 202-578-6424 or Brian Faughnan, 571-257-3309 Congressional Town Halls Show Support for Immigration Reform ESTAMOS CONTIGO Campaign Helps Americans Contact Congress (Washington, D.C.) - This August recess, Representatives and Senators are holding town halls in their states and districts and one of the hot topics of discussion is immigration reform. As House members continue working on their solution to our broken system, many are meeting with their constituents and listening to their concerns on this important and at times divisive issue. According to news reports, there is growing support amongst Members of Congress who have expressed the need for reform that reconciles rule of law and addresses a path to legalization for the 11 million immigrants currently living in the U.S. without documentation. Some of these Members include Representatives Mike Coffman (CO), Jeff Denham (CA), Dave Reichert (WA), and Daniel Webster (FL). Daniel Garza, Executive Director of The LIBRE Initiative released the following statement: "It is an essential part of the democratic process to listen to your constituency, but also provide information about the reality of a system that is impacting the economic standing and the security of the United States. The Members are doing their homework to ensure they draft legislation that will not repeat mistakes of the past. As more Americans learn about reform efforts on the Hill, there is more support for a new and improved immigration system. LIBRE's campaign ESTAMOS CONTIGO allows constituents to contact their legislators in support of reform - a civic duty that we hope every American exercises." Representative Coffman: "A comprehensive immigration reform proposal must include three essential elements; it must secure our borders and provide for effective enforcement of our immigration laws, it must contribute to the economic growth of our country, and it must be compassionate in keeping families together." Representative Denham:  "I am frustrated. I thought we'd get this done before the August work period. I think the Senate made tremendous progress. It was done bipartisan and I thought that would be enough to get the House moving forward." Representative Reichert: "We've got to find a way to build a solution around the 12 million people that are here. What about those folks who have been here 25 years?...  I want to get them to the point where they've got to pay a fine. There's some penalties they have to go through, there's steps they have to go through.  I want to hold them accountable, then they get citizenship." Representative Webster: "We're a nation of immigrants, there's no question about that. But we're also a nation of laws. I think we have to honor both of those."