Subject: Draft statement on immigration executive action
From: Dan Schwerin <[email-masked]>
To: Cheryl Mills <[email-masked]>, Philippe Reines <[email-masked]>, Jake Sullivan <[email-masked]>, Nick Merrill <[email-masked]>, Robby Mook <[email-masked]>, "[email-masked]" <[email-masked]>, Huma Abedin <[email-masked]>
Cc: Ethan Gelber <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 20 Nov 2014 06:40:30 +0000

Below is what I think she should say about the President's executive action, either in statement form or on camera.  It's long, but this is not a simple issue and we have a lot of interests and constituencies to consider.  I've tried here to express support for POTUS without getting bogged down in the details of what is sure to be an unpopular measure, seen as both too much and too little, and then pivot to the need for broader Congressional action (defined by a set of principles rather than by slavish attachment to the DOA Senate bill). I also went back to our 2013 statement on gay marriage and reprised the theme of urging respectful, substantive debate and recognizing that a lot of people aren't going to agree with us on this.  Finally, I tried to root the issue in the lived experiences of actual families, to make this a debate about human beings rather than legal precedents.

I know she's eager to take a look, so it would be great to hear quick reactions.
Thanks
Dan

President Obama is making the best of a bad situation.  No one thinks that these new steps are the ideal solution, or that they will solve the fundamental problems in our immigration system.  But there is also broad consensus that the status quo is untenable.  For years the House of Representatives has abdicated its responsibility to take on this challenge, not only refusing to act on the bipartisan Senate legislation but also failing to advance any viable alternatives.  Given this vacuum of leadership, President Obama had no choice but to follow well-established precedent and use his executive authority to begin making common-sense improvements and focus finite enforcement resources on deporting felons rather than families.

I hope the President's announcement will mark the beginning of a serious and substantive national debate about the way forward.  Because there's so much more to do if we're going to really fix our broken immigration system - if we're going to keep families together, treat everyone with dignity and compassion, uphold the rule of law, protect our national security, and respect our heritage and history.  Bringing millions of hard-working people out of the shadows and into the formal economy, so they can hold their heads high, pay taxes, and contribute to our shared prosperity, is one of the most effective steps we could take to accelerate our economic recovery and raise wages across the board for hard-working Americans.  It would also reflect the best values of an open and inclusive nation.

Only Congress can finish this job, and in the days ahead we should look to our elected representatives to take up that responsibility.  But all Americans should be part of this debate.  And as we move forward, let's remember that people of good will and good faith will continue to view this issue differently.  Our arguments may grow heated at times, but if we proceed in a spirit of respect and shared purpose, I am confident that we can yet find our way toward common ground. Through it all, I hope we never lose sight of the fact that we're not talking about abstract statistics - we're talking about real families with real experiences.  We're talking about children coming home from school to an empty house, their moms and dads whisked away without notice or explanation.  We're talking about parents lying awake at night afraid of the knock on the door that could upend their lives and tear their families apart.  We're talking about the fate of people who love this country, work hard, and want nothing more than a chance to contribute to the community and build a better life for themselves and their families.  That's what this debate is about and why inaction is not an option.

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