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Michael Earls (202) 494-8555

Brian Bilbray, Leader of Republican Anti-Immigrant Caucus, Accuses Democrats Who Support the DREAM Act of Being Accessories to Murder

Will GOP distance themselves from this whacko, or let him speak for the Party?

WASHINGTON

Representative Brian Bilbray (R-CA), who chairs the House Immigration Reform Caucus, wrote an anti-DREAM Act screed in The Hill that takes anti-immigrant politicking to a new and dangerous low.

In the essay, "Something to consider before casting a vote for the DREAM Act," Bilbray noted the horrible massacre of 72 migrants in Mexico at the hands of a drug and human smuggling cartel and had the unmitigated gall to write the following:

"Unfortunately, some people in Congress and in the business community share the responsibility for the murders. When my colleagues talk about providing amnesty (or 'a pathway to citizenship') they become an accessory to these murders. When they support amnesty, introduce bills that provide a pathway to citizenship and, in the most irresponsible of cases, use amnesty to motivate voters, they tell people: 'work with the cartels and come across our border illegally, for we will eventually give you amnesty and citizenship.' This talk of amnesty is not only an insult to every American who has come to the United States legally and the millions who wait patiently while playing by the rules, but is in part what makes it possible for the cartels to murder those 72 innocent migrant workers."

Bilbray's outrageous statement came the day before a procedural vote on the Defense Authorization bill, a vote that would determine whether the DREAM Act would be offered as an amendment. Yesterday, Senate Republicans unanimously blocked deliberation on the Defense Authorization bill, citing "extraneous" measures that may be voted on, like the DREAM Act.
According to Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America's Voice, "Mr. Bilbray, have you no shame? The DREAM Act is a targeted measure that allows talented young immigrants who grew up in America a chance to serve in the military and go to college. How dare you accuse Democrats who support it of being accessories to murder! How dare you and your colleagues insist on enforcement-only measures that increase the power and prices of criminal smugglers, and then shamelessly point the finger at those trying to enact comprehensive reform that would put the smugglers out of business!"
"Will leaders in the Republican Party denounce this outrageous statement? Or will they let this Republican leader on immigration speak for them?" Sharry asked.

America's Voice -- Harnessing the power of American voices and American values to win common sense immigration reform. The mission of America's Voice is to realize the promise of workable and humane comprehensive immigration reform. Our goal is to build the public support and create the political momentum for reforms that will transform a dysfunctional immigration system that does not work into a regulatory system that does.