Obama's Nominee for Secretary of DOL : Hilda Solis's Position on Immigration
Posted Jan 02, 2009
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President-Elect Barack Obama recently named U.S. Congressperson Hilda Solis as his choice for Secretary of Labor at the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) in the Obama Administration. Representative Solis was elected in 2000 to represent a district located in Southern California. She has discussed her views publicly and, in this article, we at the Murthy Law Firm share her positions on matters of U.S. immigration with our readers. This effort may help us learn what might be expected from those who will be shaping U.S. immigration law and policy in the foreseeable future.
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Incoming Secretary of Labor Supports CIR
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While she has not yet been officially nominated for the position of Secretary of Labor, or confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Congressperson Solis released a statement summarizing her position on several immigration matters. Representative Solis supports comprehensive immigration reform (CIR), including earned legalization for some immigrants who are without legal status. This view on U.S. immigration is similar to the position taken by President-Elect Obama. CIR, basically, would create a new nonimmigrant class providing legalization to undocumented workers, and allow for potential long-term immigration benefits, with appropriate waiting periods.
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Solis Supports Elimination of Visa Backlogs and Family Reunification
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Representative Solis also supports the elimination of visa backlogs and the reunification of immigrant families. She supported the immigrant members of the U.S. Armed Forces by introducing and sponsoring the Naturalization and Family Protection for Military Members Act. The majority of the provisions of H.R. 1814 were enacted into law on November 24, 2004, as Public Law 108-136.
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Solis Supports DREAM ACT
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Representative Solis supports educational opportunity for the roughly 65,000 immigrant students who graduate from U.S. high schools each year but do not have the required legal status to attend a college or university. She has co-sponsored the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act (DREAM Act), which is bi-partisan legislation that would give deserving students the chance to attain higher education. Regular MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers may recall a discussion of the DREAM Act in our March 9, 2007 article entitled, DREAM ACT Reintroduced.
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Reform of the Agricultural Temporary Worker Program
Representative Solis was an original co-sponsor and has supported the Agricultural Job Opportunity, Benefits and Security (AGJOBS) Act, which would reform immigration laws for the U.S. agricultural sector. The AGJOBS Act and DREAM Act were combined in the Security through Regularized Immigration and a Vibrant Economy (STRIVE) Act of 2007. More on this proposed legislation is available in our March 30, 2007 article, STRIVE ACT of 2007 Introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives.
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Conclusion
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These positive approaches to immigration policy of course will have to be balanced with the DOL's role in protecting U.S. workers in this economy, assuming that Representative Solis's nomination results in a confirmation for this position. The DOL is a vital player in employment-based immigration, particularly with respect to the labor certification process for permanent residence ("green card") cases. The selection of the Secretary of Labor, therefore, is very important from an immigration point of view.
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