House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has voiced criticism of the Senate and White House’s immigration agreement, saying the temporary worker program would "disrupt” families.
"I have serious objections to the point system that is in the bill now,” the California Democrat said on ABC’s "This Week” on Sunday.
"Yes, we should deal with the backlog [of workers seeking citizenship]. I completely agree with that. But the family unification principles, which had been fundamental to American immigration, are disrupted by what is in there now.”
Pelosi was referring to the point system in the Senate bill, which would grant those seeking citizenship points based on English proficiency, work history and family status, the publication The Hill reports. The bill would impose tighter rules for green card eligibility for some relatives of U.S. citizens and permanent residents.
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"We’re about families and family values,” Pelosi said. "And having people coming and going, taking their children out of school and being separated from them – we should try to fashion something that recognizes the reality of life.”
Significant changes to the bill by the Pelosi-led House could doom the "fragile bipartisan coalition” supporting the bill in the Senate, according to The Hill.
Pelosi also denied conservative claims that the bill amounts to amnesty for illegal aliens, saying: "There’s nothing in this bill that is about amnesty.”