Policy & Issues
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Governments of the United States and Mexico Renew Cooperation To Protect Migrants from Dangerous Summer Conditions
MEXICO CITY, July 11, 2011— As part of their ongoing commitment to safeguarding the health, dignity, and well-being of undocumented migrants during the repatriation process, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Government of Mexico today reinitiated the seasonal Mexican Interior Repatriation Program (MIRP).
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Remarks by the President on Comprehensive Immigration Reform in El Paso, Texas
El Paso, Texas, May 10,2011.- President Obama: And it was a reminder of a simple idea, as old as America itself: E pluribus unum. Out of many, one. We define ourselves as a nation of immigrants -- a nation that welcomes those willing to embrace America’s ideals and America’s precepts.
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Remarks by the President at Cinco de Mayo Reception May 5, 2010
"Make no mistake, our immigration system is broken. And after so many years in which Washington has failed to meet its responsibilities, Americans are right to be frustrated, including folks along border states. But the answer isn’t to undermine fundamental principles that define us as a nation."
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Southwest Border Partners: U.S.-Mexico Cooperation on Security, Law Enforcement, and Commerce
May 4, 2010, conversation between Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Mexican Interior Secretary Fernando Gomez-Mont at the Brookings Institution.
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Video: Excerpt from Secretary Clinton's Taped Interview for "Meet the Press" May 2, 2010
"We have to try to balance the very legitimate concerns that Americans – not just people in Arizona but across the country - have about safe and secure borders, about trying to have comprehensive immigration reform, with a law that I think does what a state doesn't have the authority to do: try to impose its own immigration law that is really the province of the federal government."
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Statement by the President on Senate Proposal Outlined Today to Fix Our Nation’s Broken Immigration System
“It is the federal government's responsibility to enforce the law and secure our borders, as well as to set clear rules and priorities for future immigration. The continued failure of the federal government to fix the broken immigration system will leave the door open to a patchwork of actions at the state and local level that are inconsistent and as we have seen recently, often misguided.
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Secretary of State Clinton Answers Question Regarding Mexico’s Travel Warning About Arizona
April 29, 2010 – "It’s not a surprise that the Mexican Government has registered its very strong concern about the legislation passed across their border in Arizona, but so has President Obama and others. So we will be working to understand and try to mitigate the concerns on that and other issues with the Mexicans."
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Interview by Andrea Mitchell with Secretary Of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano
"let me say what I said when the bill was signed; that I thought it was unfortunate and misguided; that I think it will not be value-added to law enforcement, indeed, it will detract from some of the efforts that are already under way to really focus on the most serious offenders, the most serious criminals, the ones that not only have crossed the border illegally but are committing other crimes."
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Excerpt of Statement by Attorney General Eric Holder at April 27, 2010, Press Conference
"I think that that law is an unfortunate one. I think that it is, I fear, subject to potential abuse… The Justice Department, along with… DHS, is looking at the law to decide exactly how we are going to react to it. We are considering all possibilities, including the possibility of a court challenge."
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Excerpts of Deposition by Secretary Of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano in the Senate April 27, 2010
"…I think your observation bears repeating, and that is by helping Mexico, we help ourselves, and that particularly our assistance through Merida and other means in this issue on the cartels helps us. These cartels impact us, and that's why we view them as a -- as a homeland-security issue."
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Remarks by the President at Naturalization Ceremony for Active-Duty Service Members
Like so many others, these men and women met their responsibilities. They played by the rules. They have earned their citizenship. And so on a day like this, we are also reminded of how we must remain both a nation of immigrants and a nation of laws. This includes fixing America’s broken immigration system.