Prev Next
Featured Quizzes
Politix Daily Headlines
Featured Debates
Issues

See all 19 issues

BREAKING

Obama: 'Unless You're a Native American, You Came From Someplace Else'

President makes impassioned speech backing immigration reform

Next>

by Mary Noble

Senior Editor t +

Image: AP

President Obama gave a fiery address supporting a similar package of comprehensive immigration reform to that proposed by the Senate.

He acknowledged the strong emotions fueling the debate on immigration. "The closer we get [to reform], the more emotional this issue is going to become," said the president.

But that didn't stop Obama from interjecting some emotional rhetoric of his own. "A lot of folks forget that most of us used to be them," said the POTUS to loud applause. "Unless you're a native American, you came from someplace else. Somebody brought you."

Immigrants, he said, all "did their part to build our nation. They were the Einsteins and the Carnegies, but also them men and women...who built this country hand by hand, brick by brick."

In the speech Obama endorsed the Senate's bill, announced Monday, which would offer a path to earned citizenship for 11 million undocumented immigrants – and said he'd propose his own bill if Congress doesn't act fast. Obama's proposals differ slightly from theirs. His plan includes "passing a background check, paying taxes, paying a penalty, learning English and then going to the back of the line."

Via Politico.
Like this article? B Vote Up
?

Did Obama's speech make you feel any more favorable towards immigration reform?

View results

237 Comments (view in Forum)

  • Knightkore
    !
    @Thegrif Hey it's okay....they can just congress to raise the debt ceiling again and as long as their is no budget technically there is no money being spent right?
  • harold_lloyd
    !
    @drpeeper
    Sorry, adding 11 million mostly young and healthy immigrants to the mix will actually improve the fiscal situation with regard to the ACA.

  • Load more replies >

  • stepped_in_it
    !
    Agreed....and "passing a background check, paying taxes, paying a penalty, learning English and then going to the back of the line," don't sound like it's a cake walk for illegals either!
  • jessejaymes
    !
    @stepped_in_it Hey, if that's the case then I can live with it. But I doubt that will be the case. it wasn't with Reagan and what I want to know is if illegals do the work citizens won't, then when all these people are citizens does that mean we're going to let in another 11 million illegals to do that work? Where does it end?

  • Load more replies >

  • drpeeper
    !
    He's just playing to his dumbed down base. Yes, even the Founders were from 'someplace else'.

    And those that followed built, fortified fought & died for this country- the one you like to trash so much.

    Anyone who thinks this man is intelligent is beyond help.
  • Knightkore
    !
    Okay, first....huh? Second, President Hussein Obama aka Barry Soetero should have a familiarity with this 'Unless You're a Native American, You Came From Someplace Else' on many ironic levels....
    Third....does he no know the definition of natural born citizen? Which I am and my parents are, and grandparents and great grandparents....what about his....less than American family tree?
    After this speech I would say immigration reform should be held off indefinitely....until....the non-natural born citizen in the office of the president is finished with his term....after all I think his interest in this is most definitely a conflict of interest....

  • Load more replies >

  • Thegrif
    !
    As I said on another post yesterday. I see no difference between criminal trespass on to someones property, and illegally crossing the border.
    Now I use to take trespassers to the jail house but illegals, if they come forward, their punishment is a chance to live in America, wow?
    Thats like someone trespassing on your property and the law saying sure you can stay.
    What's next? Someone breaks in my home and the law is going to say they get to live in my home.
    Just another reason not to ban any firearms.
    (That last line was sort of a joke, don't get your panties in a bunch.)

  • Load more replies >

  • Neo_NtheMatrix
    !
    I just can't get over how this president time and time again wants to reward people for breaking the law. I came from this country, I was born and raised here, as were my father and grandfather and his father before him. I can't say the same about obama.
  • AceLuby
    !
    His mother is from Kansas, I'm sure he can go back a ways in his family tree and find plenty of grandfathers that have been here just as long as yours.
  • bjrose
    !
    It does not matter if you are 100 percent of anything.Everybody has rule for their country.You do not get to wander in and out and demand citizenship.That may have been how it was done years ago,but not now. Which is why I am registering as an Independent. It's time to send a message to the democrats.

  • Load more replies >

  • NTBFW
    !
    @Republican5001 after watching the US spend billions rebuilding countries we fought wars with, Maybe Mexico should declare war on us.
  • PoliticalSpice
    !
    Why hasn't anyone pointed out Mexican land was stolen through murderous terrorism of the u.s. and mexicans has every right to be here, especially since they are doing so non-violently...
  • NTBFW
    !
    @PoliticalSpice the real story is the Comanche owned the better part of Texas. The Mexican government begged Americans to settle in Tajes to fight the Comanche. But you avoided the truth that the Mexican government has failed its citizens. There is no reason Mexico can't be a very wealthy country.

  • Load more replies >

  • PolitixMary K
    Mary Noble, Senior Editor
    !
    Hey Neo, good question! I was worried that wasn't a good choice of phrase... It's kind of an antiquated expression meaning "it rubbed me the wrong way." I've changed the poll option now to be more comprehensible :)
  • stepped_in_it
    !
    @Neo_NtheMatrix I say fine American employers who are hiring illegal's illegality helping create this immigration problem in the first place (no jobs = no illegal immigration = this discussion does not happen).
  • Neo_NtheMatrix
    !
    @AceLuby - You said it's the employers hiring illegal immigrants. I say let's fine those very employers. How much? Until it hurts and they won't do it again. If that's not sufficient deterrent then we prosecute them in criminal court. Are you with that?
  • jessejaymes
    !
    @Neo_NtheMatrix As it stands the fines for hiring illegals are not sufficient to equal the savings made by hiring them. You make that fine 1 million a day for every day it can be proven than an illegal worked for a corporation and you watch the corporations get with the plan.

  • Load more replies >

  • stepped_in_it
    !
    What is better....rounding up 11 million illegals and deporting them (think about the expense of this roundup) or with these requirements "passing a background check, paying taxes, paying a penalty, learning English and then going to the back of the line," making them tax paying, english speaking citizens?
  • Knightkore
    !
    Well, how many generations have to be an....wait....'Unless You're a Native American, You Came From Someplace Else' it just hit me....this means since he obviously does NOT consider himself native american {which this quote of his has just a tinge of racism in it} how then could he qualify to be a natural born citizen as defined in the Constitution and by many court cases?
  • methinks
    !
    "A lot of folks forget that most of us used to be them."

    No, Mr. President, MY family came here legally. These people didn't, but you don't see the difference. What planet are you from?
  • Politic-n
    !
    WOW did Obama fall asleep through History class? Is is proclaiming that "Native Americans" evolved in the Americas independent of other humans? There were no primates here prior to humans arrival, so that's definitely not scientifically feasable. Plus that would make them a separate species and not human! WOW! Or is he subscribing to the Native American's version of "Creationism" and saying they just magically appeared here? Doesn't that go against the Socialist's war on religion?

    Native American's immigrated here during the last ice ages when there was a land bridge due to lower ocean levels. They fought each other for thousands of years over the same lands, taking from each other over and over again. To suggest that they were a homogenous group and collectively still are, is pure racism!!!!!!!!!! I take major offense to that being of Arapaho decent! That's like saying all "brown" people are one race because they have similar pigmentation! RACIST!

    But what should people expect from the party of racists, aka Democrats, aka the Modern KKK.
  • RobertJHarsh
    !
    Good point. I seem to remember this whole "frozen land bridge" over the Bering Straight that people walked across? Evolution? I guess it's all blah from some pol.
  • drpeeper
    !
    He fell asleep through all his classes. Classic example of pseudo-intellectualism. But, hey !!! He fist bumps his wife and has a cool Blackberry! That's all today's voters care about.
  • Starsplash
    !
    Although you are correct in this nature, Native Americans are "native" because they are the first to immigrate to the US, which makes them the origins of the US.

    Be offended all you want and there really isn't any reason to be offended unless you are anti Obama. The only original population on the US is the native Americans. They were the first here and thats all that matters. Being the first here allows you to make the standards. EVeryone else immigrated here.

  • Load more replies >

  • Yank
    !
    No, that would be decedents of immigrants. Also that has nothing to do with the current illegal immigration topic.
  • Hireman
    !
    "His plan includes "passing a background check, paying taxes, paying a penalty, learning English and then going to the back of the line."" -- This is better than some of his earlier statement, but he forgets the problem: They all broke the law to be here. This then caused us to reduce the LEGAL immigrants allowed. Now, many were kids and had zero choice in the matter. They have the sympathy and support of most Americans. But the rest invaded a country and sapped its resources in most cases. Paying taxes and a fine isn't enough.

    The government needs to also stop the massive flow over the border(s). Some states have incurred billions in costs associated with the illegals residing within. You don't get out the mop to clean the deck when the ship's hull has a gash in it.

    Making them all learn English is a good move at making sure we can best help them in their transition, and I applaud the president for that. This also reduces costs as people won't need as many translators for everything from hospitals, to police, to employment.

    If the president wants to honestly stick to a campaign pledge from 2008 OR 2012, he should take his proposal and add the Senate's requirement to fix the border. As a side benefit, they can get more construction workers off the couch.
  • Colin2k41
    !
    Funny because I have A Founding father as a 6th great grandfather. All i Saw this as was a desperate attempt to get people to agree with him. Anybody that was born here is a NATIVE AMERICAN. Skin color hasn't got a damn thing to do with it.
  • Knightkore
    !
    He wrote about in that book of his....where he ate a dog....you know just how normal Americans do....wait....Kenyans do....which generation was that?
  • Yank
    !
    @Starsplash

    Native:

    Noun

    A person born in a specified place or associated with a place by birth, whether subsequently resident there or not.

    I am very much native, and I am an American. I guess I am a Native American!
  • Starsplash
    !
    @Yank A native American would never call themselves Yank.

    Yes, congragulations. You looked up native in the dictionary and thats what it gave you. But thats not what it means in this context.

  • Load more replies >

  • Knightkore
    !
    A history/anthropology lesson:

    http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index...

    Well, your question is phrased in a rather confusing manner. The United States is a political entity created by the Articles of Confederation (created in 1777 and ratified in 1781 before being replaced by the Constitution which was ratified 1788). As a result, the answer to your question is...well, quite vague. There were already many people here, and a majority (slim) came from the British Isles, while many came from Africa and from among the many German Principalities, in addition to the many Native Americans who had been on the scene for far, far longer.

    However, I presume you meant to ask who were the first people to settle in North America? In that case, anthropology gives us several answers. Most anthropologists agree that the Clovis people migrated across an existing land bridge between what is today Siberia and Alaska, and then poured South, following the Coast lines, and East, spreading out and following the herds of large herbivores such as woolly mammoths. However, more recent additions have been made to this theory, suggesting that some of the Clovis people (or at least people with very, very similar stone-knapping techniques) may have come from central and western Europe at about the same time or shortly after the Clovis people who came from Asia. At any rate, these stone age, nomadic hunter-gatherer peoples were the first to occupy North America. They are, likely, the ancestors of modern Amerindians.

    You do of course realize that this is the subject of endless speculation.
    It is pretty obvious that what we call native Americans were here before the Europeans.
    But the Natives always said that there were people here when they got here too. So, while the anthropologists will give you an answer that they firmly believe in, they don't know either!

    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/ho...

    Stone-age Europeans were the first to set foot on North America, beating American Indians by some 10,000 years, new archaeological evidence suggests.

    {Guess we need a definition of just who is a "native american"....}
  • stepped_in_it
    !
    "Guess we need a definition of just who is a "native american"....}"
    First, did we ever get a definition of "is"....Bill asked that question once as I recall.
    PS- lot of good info and I'll have to believe you're right....since I don't hardly remember my history teachers much less the content of the classes...;-)
  • Knightkore
    !
    @stepped_in_it History is still one of my favorite subjects....fascinating....and you're right....we Bill kind of set that bar pretty low with "is"....
  • R Load more comments...