Biden’s inaugural was one year ago. That’s the spanish-speaking media of the country. Unfortunately, that singular voice spoke false hope of immigration relief to an eager and receptive audience.
You can see how the nation’s Latino interest networks behaved in an imitation of an immigration-interest SuperPAC. This is the dawning of a glorious new day, and the pathway to citizenship for all pots (click “expand to view transcript).
ANTONIO TEXEIRA – On the first day of his office, there was Hope for MillionsBiden will propose immigration reform that includes pathways to citizenship and protections for Dreamers, as well as for construction of the wall at the border.
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MARTÍN BERLANGA: In fact, the news of immigration reform is something that many of us Hispanic journalists have been waiting to report on for decades.
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KARLA MARTINEZ – But what is most important to our citizens, the issue of immigration? He promised that, in his 100th day of campaigning, he would try to make the right. The long-awaited immigration reform.
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JUAN JOSÉ GUTIERREZ, ACTIVIST: The President, the actual President, not President-elect, Joseph Biden, will send a legislative proposal to Congress to legalize all undocumented workers and their families.
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CRISTINA LONDOÑO: Promises that were made to immigrants are already being kept, with executive orders and the filing of an immigration reform plan.
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NICOLE SUAREZ
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BERLANGA – Harris and Biden have stated that they would bring back humanity the U.S. Immigration system.
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DANNY VARGAS – I think that there is the will to do it in the first year. We have many problems, but immigration reform remains a priority and must be addressed immediately.
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VANESSA HAUC – Our community now breathes with hope Dan because Biden said that he would send the immigration reform bill to Congress )…
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STACHA PRETTO… his first day as an office holder. There’s the list. One of these plans is immigration reform. It would offer a path to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented.
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ALAN TACHER, But it is a great day because Joe Biden will be taking the oath to office and filing his plan for immigration reform.
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JUAN CARLOS LOPEZ
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KARLA MARTINEZ
Unfortunately, those hopes have now faded. Biden rescinded all existing border enforcement policies upon his election. With multiple records breaking months, a steady stream of migrants continuing their journey north on the assumption that Biden would give them citizenship, the border disaster continues.
Biden *did* fulfill his campaign promises to unwind Trump’s border enforcement actions and send an immigration bill to Congress, but this was insufficient both for the activist base and for the media that encourage them. Within days, we’d begin to hear of a “Plan B,” which we first reported and consisted of shoving immigration reform into a budget reconciliation bill. This failed in the end.
Biden’s immigration proposals ended up just like the rest of his plans, which is to put it bluntly, in flames. On Inauguration Day, hopium was sold to viewers by the networks. They spent the remainder of the year reporting on runaway inflation and the supply chain crisis. The disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan resulted in looting gangs, subway deaths, and trying to pretend that they were not involved.
We remember. Remembering is something we do all the time.
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