(CNSNews.com) - President Barack Obama said today that U.S. borders cannot be secured with fences and border patrols. "It won't work," he said.
| How does he know, it's not been tried here. It has been tried in Gaza, where it works, the West Bank, where it works, Melilla, where it works, Cueta, where it works ... |
Obama made the statement in a speech at American University in Washington, D.C. in which he called on Congress to enact a "comprehensive immigration reform" law that would include a "pathway for legal status" for illegal immigrants--or what critics call amnesty.
"Even as we are committed to doing what's necessary to secure our borders, even without passage of the new law, there are those who argue that we should not move forward with any other elements of reform until we have fully sealed our borders," said Obama. "But our borders are just too vast for us to be able to solve the problem only with fences and border patrols. It won't work. Our borders will not be secure as long as our limited resources are devoted to not only stopping gangs and potential terrorists, but also the hundreds of thousands who attempt to cross each year simply to find work."
Obama also contended in the speech that the borders are more secure now than they have been in the past two decades. "The southern border is more secure today than at any time in the past 20 years," he said.
His comprehensive immigration reform plan, he said, would "demand responsibility" from illegal immigrants.
"We have to demand responsibility from people living here illegally. They must be required to admit that they broke the law. They should be required to register, pay their taxes, pay a fine, and learn English," said Obama.
"We can create a pathway for legal status that is fair, reflective of our values, and works," he said. |