During her speech on the final night of the Democratic National Convention (DNC), Kamala Harris outlined her plans to push for significant immigration reforms, including a pathway to citizenship for millions of illegal aliens currently residing in the United States.
Harris’s proposal, which she highlighted on Thursday evening, aims to reform what she described as a “broken immigration system” and create what she called an “earned pathway to citizenship.”
Harris’s plan, which could potentially impact between 11 to 22 million illegal aliens, is designed to allow these individuals to apply for green cards and eventually secure naturalized American citizenship.
This proposal remains highly controversial and faces significant opposition from a majority of lawmakers in both the House and Senate.
Despite this, Harris emphasized the need to “secure our border” while also providing a path to citizenship for those who meet certain criteria.
🚨Kamala Harris says she will give amnesty to the more than 10 million illegal aliens living in the United States.
Democrats want to replace the votes of American citizens so they never lose an election ever again. pic.twitter.com/5JIzHSoit1 [1]
— Steve Cortes (@CortesSteve) August 23, 2024 [2]
Earlier this month, Harris reiterated her commitment to amnesty during a rally in Glendale, Arizona, where she again emphasized her belief in creating a pathway to citizenship for illegal aliens.
Her stance has been echoed by other prominent Democrats, including Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA), who suggested during the DNC that Harris would prioritize amnesty as a central part of her platform.
Aguilar stated that Harris would “fight for pathways to citizenship” and advocated for the integration of DREAMers—undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children—into various sectors of the American workforce, including healthcare, education, construction, and military service.
Harris’s immigration agenda also includes bringing together diverse political factions to support immigration reform. During her DNC speech, she claimed that she and Joe Biden had successfully united Democrats and conservative Republicans to draft the “strongest border bill in decades.”
However, this claim has been met with strong criticism and has been labeled as entirely false.
What’s the difference between House-passed H.R. 2 and the “compromise” going through the Senate?
We broke it down 👇 pic.twitter.com/HWWx3pK5Ds [3]
— Heritage Foundation (@Heritage) November 20, 2023 [4]
The bill Harris referred to was the Senate’s February legislation, which was widely criticized for creating a broad catch-and-release pathway for economic migrants who seek asylum.
This pathway, which includes work permits, has been criticized for its lack of effective border control measures and for being hidden behind complex language that touted increased funding for border security.
Despite Harris’s claim of bipartisan support, the bill was rejected by many GOP senators, including those who pointed out that the bill did little to close down the Biden administration’s parole pathway, which has allowed roughly 1 million migrants into the country since 2022.
In contrast to the Senate’s bill, the Republican-led H.R. 2 bill, passed by the House, sought to tighten border security by closing loopholes and ambiguities that have been used to import at least 6 million people since 2021.
🚨 Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has announced a vote on a “bipartisan” Senate amnesty bill.
House Republicans passed #HR2 [5] – the best border security bill in history – on May 11, 2023.
If Schumer & the Democrats are serious about border security… they’ll put the… pic.twitter.com/1FXNVcy7LJ [6]
— Citizens for Renewing America (@amrenewcitizen) May 20, 2024 [7]
This bill aimed to push up wages and productivity by ensuring that jobs, housing, and resources are reserved for American citizens, rather than being diverted to newly arrived migrants.
Throughout her DNC speech, Harris provided little evidence that her immigration policies would benefit American workers by raising wages or increasing productivity.
While she did mention wages, it was in the context of government lawsuits rather than any specific plan to improve economic conditions for American citizens. “I stood up for veterans and students being scammed by big for-profit colleges for workers who are being cheated out of their wages, the wages they were due,” Harris said.
As the 2024 election approaches, Harris’s immigration stance and the broader Democratic platform on this issue are likely to remain points of contention, with debates continuing over the impact of these policies on American workers and national security.