Statement by President Obama on Introduction of Senator Menendez’s Bill to Fix Broken

I was pleased to see that Senator Menendez introduced a bill in the Senate to fix our nation’s broken immigration system. I look forward to reviewing it in detail, and I’m pleased that the bill includes important building blocks laid out in the bipartisan framework presented earlier this year addressing the urgent need for reform. Senator Menendez and others in Congress have shown critical leadership on this issue, which is vital to moving this debate forward. As I told Senator Menendez and other members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus when we met a couple of weeks ago, we cannot continue to allow partisan politics and divisive rhetoric to dominate and delay action on this critical issue. The American people expect their elected officials from both parties to work together to tackle the greatest challenges confronting our nation, and that’s what fixing the broken immigration system is all about. The status quo is simply unacceptable for both our economy and our security. Comprehensive immigration reform would provide lasting and dedicated resources for our border security, while restoring accountability and responsibility to the broken system. I look forward to working with members of both parties to get this done.