17 MAR 2023
ICYMI: Nevada Senator Cortez Masto Pushes for Immigration Reform and Protecting Right to Asylum
Cortez Masto opposes asylum ban, says family detention “was wrong under Trump and it’s wrong now,” and argues voters across party lines support immigrant families and workers
NEVADA – Today, NPR’s Steve Inskeep published a conversation with Nevada SenatorCatherine Cortez Masto on the urgent need for immigration reform to protect the millions of immigrants, including Dreamers, TPS recipients and essential workers currently living and contributing to the economy and communities across the country. The Senator’s new
legislation, the Fairness for Immigrant Families Act, seeks to fix outdated laws complicating our immigration system to help bring families out of the shadows and crack down on notario fraud.
In the interview, Senator Cortez Masto acknowledges the challenges we face at the southern border and offers solutions to address these issues like more funding more immigration judges, but cautions the Biden administration against using ineffective measures of the past like family detention and restrictions on asylum. She puts it bluntly: It was wrong under Trump and it’s wrong now.
As the granddaughter of immigrants and a Senator representing a state where one in five Nevadans is an immigrant, Senator Cortez Masto understands that immigrants are an integral part of our nation and our American story.
In case you missed it…
NPR: How Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, from swing state Nevada, views immigration
By Nevada Senator Catherine Cortez Masto
“I think there’s a lot of emotion and misinformation intentionally that’s been put out there, particularly from the previous president who called them all criminals. So to me,it’s all about showing up and having these conversations and explaining what’s going on. Because I can guarantee you in my state—whether you’re in Northern Nevada or Southern Nevada—there is support for these families both by Democrats, Republicans and our Independents, when they understand what we’re talking about. Because a lot of these families they know. The families are already in the community; they’re working quite often 2 jobs; they’re going through school; they want to have a future. But it’s limited because they can’t get that permanent path to a residency.”
“People rightfully so, are watching what’s happening at the border and saying ‘what?’ it’s too chaotic. We have to put funding into the border there, where we have more funding for immigration judges; we have more funding for that orderly process that needs to go through; we have to make sure that we’re addressing the needs for inspection.”
“[The Right-Wing is saying]: ‘Just keep everybody out, shut the borders, nobody comes in.’ But that’s not all of my colleagues that I am talking to, including some Republicans. ‘Cause listen Steve, here’s a few solutions: We’ve got to modernize our ports of entry, to address the drug trafficking. I think that’s common amongst both Democrats and Republicans, that we’d want to do that. And then the way that our country handles our asylum, it just it doesn’t work. And I’ve heard that from both of my colleagues, both Republicans and Democrats, that we’ve got to fix the asylum process. And what my concern and what I saw in the past is: there has been leadership that has stopped us from moving forward.”
“With respect to family detention, it was wrong under Trump and it’s wrong now. There was a proposal for a transit ban, to me again—wrong proposal. That’s a piecemeal solution to a broken immigration system. So there’s things they are doing that are too harsh, that are not helping us solve this problem. When in actuality we can come together and figure out the right way to do this.”
###
The Immigration Hub is a national organization dedicated to advancing fair and just immigration policies through strategic leadership, innovative communications strategies, legislative advocacy and collaborative partnerships.