AP
By Jonathan Lemire
December 14, 2015
Democratic
presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton proposed Monday that people
applying to be U.S. citizens should get a break in fees and lamented
complex immigration
laws that she said can tear families apart.
In
a speech to the annual National Immigration Integration Conference in
Brooklyn, the former secretary of state said she wants to give more help
to people eligible for
citizenship. She said she would waive the fees, increase access to
language programs and close privately run detention centers as part of a
plan to create a "path to full and equal citizenship."
"If
you work hard, if you love this country and want nothing more to build a
good future for you and your children, we should give you a way to come
forward and become
a citizen," she said.
She
described the uncertain fate of one family living under the threat of
deportation. Prior to the speech, she met with the Suarez family, who
fled Honduras and now lives
on Long Island. The five members of the family have four different
immigration statuses, the father, Osman Suarez, explained to Clinton.
"I want to put an end to families being torn apart," Clinton said.
She
also took aim at some of her Republican rivals' anti-immigration
rhetoric. Without directly naming him, Clinton cited GOP front-runner
Donald Trump's campaign slogan.
"I
disagree with those who say, 'make America great again' because we are
great and we're going to stay great and we're going to be greater," she
said, adding that "mean-spirited"
comments about building walls and closing borders would cause the
nation to "lose talented people."
Trump's
spokeswoman responded with a quote from the candidate saying that if he
is elected, the U.S. "will be greater than ever before!"
"If Hillary Clinton is elected president our country is doomed," Trump said in the statement.
Two
hecklers shouted at Clinton in the closing moments of her speech, angry
at the links between major banks and private detention centers. Clinton
did not acknowledge
either protester.
She
was introduced by Rep. Luis Gutiérrez, the Illinois congressman who is
one of the House's loudest voices calling for immigration reform.
Gutierrez announced his endorsement
of Clinton earlier Monday. She is expected to deliver a speech on
terrorism in Minnesota on Tuesday.
For more information, go to: www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com
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