Event Takeaways: Punchbowl News x Sen. Alex Padilla

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Thanks so much for joining us on Thursday morning for a virtual Punchbowl News pop-up conversation, presented by fwd.us, with Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) The event focused on immigration reform and the looming government shutdown and debt ceiling deadlines.

→ Padilla on the renewed push to include immigration reform in reconciliation:

“I’m actually very confident we’re going to have an immigration element of this reconciliation proposal. So the parliamentarians said no on Sunday, but not to the effort overall, only to the specific proposal that was in front of her. So we’re eager to get back in front of the parliamentarian with alternatives. Look, the bottom line is this: I know this is the budget reconciliation process. It’s not the standard order or procedure for legislation. But it is undeniable, the economic impacts that immigrants make for the nation, from a workforce standpoint, from a consumer standpoint, and from an entrepreneurial standpoint. And when you had that impact economically, you’re impacting the federal budget, no question. So I do believe we’re gonna get there.”

→ Padilla said he opposed the Biden administration’s response to the Haitian migrant crisis and urged an end to Title 42 deportations:

“It’s just the most recent reminder of why we need to update and modernize our immigration laws and our immigration system. It seems like we go through something like this every year. So yes, we’re past due to reorganize and restructure our immigration system for for modern times and finally bring about justice for many of the long-term residents of the United States that happen to be undocumented.”

→ Padilla slammed the Republican opposition to raising the debt ceiling: 

“We’re not needing to raise the debt ceiling to cover this smart, paid-for historic investment in America’s infrastructure. We need to raise the debt ceiling for expenses and appropriation that had been approved in the past, especially those Trump tax cuts. So what we’re facing here is the equivalent of Mitch McConnell and Republicans and the prior Trump administration having a great steak dinner. And when the bill comes, they don’t want to get the credit card out. They don’t want to pay it. And so we’ll figure this out. The working families across the country deserve no less.”

→ Padilla on the need to avoid a government shutdown:

“The people that get hurt the most are working families across the country and the most vulnerable. So we owe it to them to do everything we can to avoid a government shutdown, and frankly, do the right thing.

→ Fwd.us Vice President of Advocacy Alida Garcia launched the conversation by delivering opening remarks on legislative efforts to achieve immigration reform:

“After decades of inaction, we are finally at the cusp of passing significant immigration legislation that will provide relief for millions of people and is supported by a bipartisan majority of the American public. And with the fate of DACA pending in antagonistic courts there’s truly no foreseeable legislative window to kick the can to. Democrats must deliver on immigration and budget reconciliation. And I’m confident they will.”

A big thank you to fwd.us for partnering with us on this event. Watch the full conversation here.

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Team Punchbowl News