Durbin Meets with President Biden, Democratic Lawmakers on Path to Citizenship for Undocumented Immigrants

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and lead sponsor of the Dream Act, met yesterday with President Joe Biden and Democratic members of Congress in the White House to discuss the plight of Dreamers following the recent federal court decision by Judge Hanen and the need to finally offer a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.

“Two weeks ago, a federal court ruling in Texas on the legality of DACA placed the lives and futures of hundreds of thousands of Dreamers in jeopardy.  This cruel and misguided decision is the culmination of a longstanding Republican campaign to deport Dreamers and their families,” Durbin said.  “The overwhelming majority of Americans support a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, many of whom have risked their lives during this pandemic.  But Republicans have repeatedly obstructed bipartisan immigration reform.    During yesterday’s meeting, I made clear that I believe the only viable option to meaningful immigration reform is through the reconciliation bill—and I will work day and night to make it a reality.” 

The meeting participants included: President Joe Biden; Vice President Kamala Harris; U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), and Alex Padilla (D-CA); and six House members – Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) Chair Raul Ruiz (D-CA-36), CHC Immigration Task Force Chair Linda Sánchez (D-CA-38), Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee Chair Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA-40), House Democratic Caucus Vice Chair Pete Aguilar (D-CA-31), Judiciary Committee Chair Jerry Nadler (D-Ny-10), and Immigration Subcommittee Chair Zoe Lofgren (D-CA-19).

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