Immigration Speech Doesn’t Sell Well in Region

Here’s more reaction of members of the Kansas and Missouri Congressional delegations to the President’s speech:
“The very first action the President has taken, following the historic rejection of his policies, is to slap the face of every immigrant that went through the legal process to become American citizens.

“I have all confidence that the Republican Congress will fight to uphold the Constitution.”
Ed Martin
Missouri GOP Chairman

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“Amnesty rewards those who have cheated the system and punishes those who played by the rules and went through the legal immigration process. I strongly oppose this amnesty order and the President’s attempt to not only bypass the legislative process, but the American people,” he continued.
“We are a nation of laws and no one is above the rule of law – not this President or any President,”
Mo. Rep. Same Graves
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“I am disappointed that President Obama has chosen to bypass Congress in his rush to implement immigration reform. Our Constitution requires that Congress write the laws and the President execute those laws. Americans are divided on how to address immigration reform. President Obama’s action can only harm efforts to bring Americans together to reach consensus on this important matter.”
Rep. Vicky Hartzler

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“President Obama’s Executive Order is a clear overreach of his authority and sets a dangerous precedent by placing politics ahead of the rule of law. Instead of working with Congress to craft a true solution to the immigration crisis, as required under the Constitution, the President’s action will only serve to exacerbate the underlying problem—border security.

“It is my hope that the legal challenges that are sure to follow are successful in overturning this unlawful executive order. Kansans deserve better from Washington and the President.”
Rep. Mike Pompeo

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“Today’s action by the president to unilaterally grant amnesty to millions of undocumented illegal immigrants in the United States is not only unconstitutional but also a complete overreach by this administration. The president has completely circumvented Congress with this executive action. Just last year, the president was quoted saying, “I’m not the emperor of the United States. My job is to execute laws that are passed.” He should follow his own words and realize that immigration reform is much too complex and too important to not properly go through the legislative process. Rather than issuing these lawless executive actions, the president should complete the border fence that Congress previously passed into law, increase enforcement against tax and welfare fraud by illegal immigrants, and actually follow through with existing law instead of a “catch-and-release” approach. House Republicans have been holding discussions regarding how to address this issue and I am confident that action will be taken soon.”
Mo. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer

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“This election the American people sent a clear message to Washington that they do not want repeats of failed past policies, they want President Obama to work with Congress to solve problems. The President’s unilateral action blatantly disregards this message and the separation of powers set forth by the Constitution. Even President Obama himself has admitted over 20 times that this executive action exceeds constitutional authority. Furthermore, as the White House has rightly pointed out, executive amnesty has been tried in the past and that it is even being discussed again is proof positive that it is a failed policy. Repeating a past mistake will only make things worse and will destroy any progress Congress has made toward real immigration reform.
Ks. Rep. Lynn Jenkins

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“Our immigration system is broken, and I support a comprehensive plan to fix it, but executive orders aren’t the way to do it. The system can only be truly fixed through legislation by Congress. The Senate’s comprehensive plan got overwhelming bipartisan approval, and Republicans in the U.S. House have sat on their hands for a year-and-a-half, refusing to even consider that bill. They should quit stalling, get to work, and do their jobs—debate the comprehensive plan that passed the Senate with a two-thirds margin.”
Mo. Sen. Claire McCaskill

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“The President’s plan to grant amnesty to those who have entered this country illegally is unconstitutional. I strongly oppose his unilateral efforts to ignore federal law and will support any legislative means possible to stop these actions including using the power of the purse to defund these unprecedented measures.

“If there was any question about the unlawful nature of this plan, we need only to look back to President Obama’s own words: ‘there are enough laws on the books by Congress that are very clear in terms of how we have to enforce our immigration system. That for me to simply, through executive order, ignore those congressional mandates would not conform with my appropriate role as President.’
Ks. Rep. Kevin Yoder

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The Kansas City Star quotes U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, “Our immigration system is broken and the American people overwhelmingly support reform,” Cleaver said in Washington, “but our partisan politics have precluded progress in Congress.”

In a written statement, Cleaver defended the executive action. “There is precedent of previous presidents acting alone on immigration,” he wrote, “but some of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are threatening a shutdown now that President Obama is taking action.”

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article4039832.html#storylink=cpy