 "Obama hopeful of immigration reform")
US President Barack Obama has hoped that the much delayed comprehensive immigration reform would soon be passed by the Congress that would provide a path to citizenship to some 11 million undocumented people and attract talented scientists and engineers from across the world.
"I am actually optimistic that we're going to get this done. But I am a congenital optimist. I would have to be; I'm named Barack Obama; I ran for president. And won twice... This (immigration reform) is a boost to our economy," Obama said in response to a question on comprehensive immigration reform at the Wall Street Journal's CEO Council Annual Meeting.
"Everywhere I go, I meet with entrepreneurs and CEOs who say, I've got, these terrific folks; they've just graduated from Caltech or MIT or Stanford; they're ready to do business here; some of them have these amazing new ideas that we think we can commercialise, but they're being dragged back to their home countries, not because they want to go but because the immigration system doesn't work," he said yesterday.
"We should want to immediately say to young people who we've helped to educate in this country, you want to stay? We want you here," Obama said.
"We do have to deal with about 11 million folks who are in this country, most of them just seeking opportunity. They did break the law by coming here or overstaying their visa. And they've got to earn their way out of the shadows, pay a fine, learn English, get to the back of the line, pay their back taxes, but giving them a mechanisms whereby they can get right by our society. And that's reflected in the Senate bill," Obama added.
"I am actually optimistic that we're going to get this done. But I am a congenital optimist. I would have to be; I'm named Barack Obama; I ran for president. And won twice... This (immigration reform) is a boost to our economy," Obama said in response to a question on comprehensive immigration reform at the Wall Street Journal's CEO Council Annual Meeting.
"Everywhere I go, I meet with entrepreneurs and CEOs who say, I've got, these terrific folks; they've just graduated from Caltech or MIT or Stanford; they're ready to do business here; some of them have these amazing new ideas that we think we can commercialise, but they're being dragged back to their home countries, not because they want to go but because the immigration system doesn't work," he said yesterday.
More From This Section
"The good news is that the Senate bill was a bipartisan bill. And we know what the component parts of this are. We've got to have strong border security...We've got to make sure that we have a legal immigration system that doesn't cause people to sit in the queue for five years, 10 years, 15 years, in some cases 20 years.
"We should want to immediately say to young people who we've helped to educate in this country, you want to stay? We want you here," Obama said.
"We do have to deal with about 11 million folks who are in this country, most of them just seeking opportunity. They did break the law by coming here or overstaying their visa. And they've got to earn their way out of the shadows, pay a fine, learn English, get to the back of the line, pay their back taxes, but giving them a mechanisms whereby they can get right by our society. And that's reflected in the Senate bill," Obama added.