To: Rep. Raúl Grijalva (AZ-3)
Rep Grijalva, Introduce a Discharge Petition!
Representative Grijalva, in your role as leader of the Progressive Caucus, you often have shown great courage and conviction when others would not or could not, standing up to special interests and right wing bullies in order to do the right thing for the American people.
As a leader in the fight for comprehensive immigration reform and a tireless advocate for your own constituents in Southern Arizona, you know that we cannot continue to allow the fate of 11 million immigrants and the safety of our border communities, to be held hostage by a right-wing fringe, or the ambitions of one politician.
The signers of this petition, along with the combined 15 million members of MoveOn.org, America's Voice, 18Million Rising, We Belong Together, and CREDO Action, call on you to stand strong and take the step that your well meaning colleagues have not had the courage to.
Please take the lead in this historic moment by introducing a discharge petition to bring the Senate immigration bill to the House floor, if Speaker John Boehner refuses to do it himself.
As a leader in the fight for comprehensive immigration reform and a tireless advocate for your own constituents in Southern Arizona, you know that we cannot continue to allow the fate of 11 million immigrants and the safety of our border communities, to be held hostage by a right-wing fringe, or the ambitions of one politician.
The signers of this petition, along with the combined 15 million members of MoveOn.org, America's Voice, 18Million Rising, We Belong Together, and CREDO Action, call on you to stand strong and take the step that your well meaning colleagues have not had the courage to.
Please take the lead in this historic moment by introducing a discharge petition to bring the Senate immigration bill to the House floor, if Speaker John Boehner refuses to do it himself.
Why is this important?
Most Americans still believe that this is a country of opportunity, where those who put forth honest effort can build a good life for their family. Many of us have parents, grandparents or great grandparents who came here as immigrants and earned their citizenship through hard work and determination, while still managing to raise their families on a meager salary, learn an unfamiliar language and labor at difficult and often low paying jobs that no one else was willing to take.
For many years, however, our country’s immigration system has been broken, creating barriers for new immigrants who want to work hard and earn their place as citizens. Meanwhile, those who don’t play by the rules have flourished, leading to increased crime and danger along our borders. Most Americans don’t begrudge others the right to work hard and succeed, but we all want our communities to be safe and for those who take advantage of American opportunity to earn it honestly.
This summer, it looked like Congress might finally pass legislation that would solve many of our country’s immigration woes in keeping with the views and values of majority of Americans. The immigration reform bill passed in the Senate this June includes a pathway for undocumented immigrants to work hard and earn citizenship while increasing safety for our communities by strengthening border security.
It is time for the U.S. House of Representatives to pass comprehensive immigration reform, like the Senate did in June. However, Republicans in the house have stalled and effectively killed the Senate bill to force this option off the table. Speaker of the House John Boehner has insisted since this Spring, before the Senate bill even passed, that this proposed legislation would never make it to the House of Representatives and he and his colleagues have made good on this promise.
In the meantime, our system is still broken. We have no path for many otherwise honest, hard working immigrants to make things right legally, including many who have grown up in this country and lived most of their lives as Americans. Meanwhile, this broken system means that our communities are still unsafe, as those desperate to make a better life for their family continue to present an opportunity for profit to the drug smugglers, coyotes and criminals who pose a threat to our Southwestern borders.
The good news is that we live in a Democracy with a lawmaking process that has checks and balances to protect the American People from grandstanding by a handful of legislators. By using a process called a discharge petition, members of the House of Representatives can gain support from their colleagues to force the legislation to the House floor for a vote.
Unfortunately, while many House Democrats have voiced support for signing such a discharge petition, none have yet shown the leadership to actually introduce it. We need one brave soul to take the lead.
A coalition of progressive and social justice groups including MoveOn.org, America's Voice, 18Million Rising, We Belong Together, and CREDO Action, have committed to mobilizing our combined 15 million members in support of a discharge petition on comprehensive immigration reform.
We hope you will join us in urging Arizona Representative Raul Grijalva to take the courage and leadership his colleagues have not by introducing a discharge petition and making it possible to bring the Senate Immigration legislation to the House floor.
For many years, however, our country’s immigration system has been broken, creating barriers for new immigrants who want to work hard and earn their place as citizens. Meanwhile, those who don’t play by the rules have flourished, leading to increased crime and danger along our borders. Most Americans don’t begrudge others the right to work hard and succeed, but we all want our communities to be safe and for those who take advantage of American opportunity to earn it honestly.
This summer, it looked like Congress might finally pass legislation that would solve many of our country’s immigration woes in keeping with the views and values of majority of Americans. The immigration reform bill passed in the Senate this June includes a pathway for undocumented immigrants to work hard and earn citizenship while increasing safety for our communities by strengthening border security.
It is time for the U.S. House of Representatives to pass comprehensive immigration reform, like the Senate did in June. However, Republicans in the house have stalled and effectively killed the Senate bill to force this option off the table. Speaker of the House John Boehner has insisted since this Spring, before the Senate bill even passed, that this proposed legislation would never make it to the House of Representatives and he and his colleagues have made good on this promise.
In the meantime, our system is still broken. We have no path for many otherwise honest, hard working immigrants to make things right legally, including many who have grown up in this country and lived most of their lives as Americans. Meanwhile, this broken system means that our communities are still unsafe, as those desperate to make a better life for their family continue to present an opportunity for profit to the drug smugglers, coyotes and criminals who pose a threat to our Southwestern borders.
The good news is that we live in a Democracy with a lawmaking process that has checks and balances to protect the American People from grandstanding by a handful of legislators. By using a process called a discharge petition, members of the House of Representatives can gain support from their colleagues to force the legislation to the House floor for a vote.
Unfortunately, while many House Democrats have voiced support for signing such a discharge petition, none have yet shown the leadership to actually introduce it. We need one brave soul to take the lead.
A coalition of progressive and social justice groups including MoveOn.org, America's Voice, 18Million Rising, We Belong Together, and CREDO Action, have committed to mobilizing our combined 15 million members in support of a discharge petition on comprehensive immigration reform.
We hope you will join us in urging Arizona Representative Raul Grijalva to take the courage and leadership his colleagues have not by introducing a discharge petition and making it possible to bring the Senate Immigration legislation to the House floor.