Reforming our Immigration System
As the son of legal immigrants to the United States, Raja recognizes that our country is a nation of immigrants as well as a nation of laws. There is no question that our current system is broken and must be repaired. Raja is working in Congress for comprehensive immigration reform that protects our homeland and secures our borders, while repairing our broken legal immigration system.
Raja is a co-sponsor of the DREAM Act. This legislation, originally written by Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), provides a path to citizenship for the children of undocumented immigrants who have known no other home and have meaningfully staked their roots in America. We should welcome these young people, enabling them to pursue a higher education and contribute to our nation’s future. Indeed, many of these DREAMers have already contributed meaningfully to our country’s security by serving in our nation’s Armed Forces. They represent the very best attributes of our country, and we must incorporate them into the fabric of our country.
Raja believes that foreign students who have earned a graduate degree in the United States and entrepreneurs who have secured enough investment to start a business here should be granted a temporary visa to pursue their dreams in our country. In a global economy where knowledge is key, we ought to welcome those with the ideas and knowledge to create new businesses and jobs in America. We should also enable those with special technical skills to be able to stay here, fill gaps in our skill base, and start businesses, enriching our economy. As such, Raja is a co-sponsor, among other things, of the Eliminating Backlogs Act of 2023 and supports the EAGLE Act.
Our broken immigration system demands immediate reform. In this Congress, Raja supported the strongest border security and immigration bill in decades, which was developed on a bipartisan basis in the U.S. Senate. Unfortunately, it was blocked from passage by former-President Trump who urged Republicans to vote against it to prevent a “victory” for President Biden. This was an egregious example of putting politics ahead of what’s best for the country. It is imperative that we consider this legislation in the next Congress, regardless of who is president.
Finally, Raja rejects the un-American idea that whole classes of people should be barred from entering this country because of their ethnicity or religion. Raja supports efforts to strengthen protections against terrorists from abroad while making sure that we maintain the values and principles that guide our nation and make it a beacon of freedom and hope around the world.