Reclaim American Jobs Caucus Responds to Pres. Obama's Call for Amnesty

Thursday, July 1, 2010, 12:04 PM EDT - posted on NumbersUSA

Pres. Obama delivered a 30-minute speech to approximately 250 Pro-Amnesty supporters at American University in Washington, D.C. today, calling for 'comprehensive immigration reform' with a mass amnesty. While the President addressed the need to bring 11-18 million illegal aliens "out of the shadows", he failed to address the impact of issuing that many permanent work permits on an economy that has more than 25 million U.S. citizens and legal immigrants looking for full-time work.

After his speech, the Reclaim American Jobs Caucus issued the following statement…


The Reclaim American Jobs Caucus reacted today to President Obama’s remarks regarding immigration. The Caucus, co-chaired by Reps. Lamar Smith, Gary Miller and Sue Myrick, works to enforce our current immigration laws, increase worksite enforcement, and encourage employer use of the E-Verify system. American citizens and legal immigrants should not have to compete with illegal workers for scarce jobs.

Rep. Lamar Smith (TX-21) said: “There are 15 million unemployed workers in America and eight million illegal immigrants in the labor force. We could cut unemployment in half simply by reclaiming the jobs taken by illegal workers! President Obama is on the wrong side of the American people on immigration. The President should support policies that help citizens and legal immigrants find the jobs they need and deserve rather than fail to enforce immigration laws. President Obama has failed to protect American jobs.

“President Obama’s words contradict his administration's actions when it comes to immigration enforcement and border security. For example, the President has said that employers must be held accountable for hiring illegal workers. Yet under his administration, workplace enforcement is in a freefall and the Justice Department is urging the Supreme Court to stop a state from revoking the business licenses of companies that hire illegal workers. The President says that the border is more secure than ever, yet his own administration has posted signs at National Parks the border region warning Americans against the danger of smugglers. An attrition-through-enforcement approach can work, but only if the administration enforces the law.

Representative Sue Myrick (NC-09) said: “Any change in immigration policy that rewards illegal aliens with citizenship and the ability to continue working in the US is simply wrong and insulting to the millions of Americans out of a job.â€