On Saturday's Up w/ Chris Hayes, we'll talk about the immigration proposals that the Senate's bipartisan "Gang of Eight" put forward this week
On Saturday’s Up w/ Chris Hayes, we’ll talk about the immigration proposals that the Senate’s bipartisan “Gang of Eight” put forward this week. The proposed reforms center on four main pillars: creating a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants already living in the U.S. that is contingent upon strengthening the country’s borders; reforming the country’s legal immigration system; establishing an effective employment verification system; and creating a better process for admitting valuable workers to the U.S.
The authors of the plan, four Democrats and four Republicans, hope to capitalize on emerging political momentum around immigration, and the president signaled this week that he may be ready to compromise. But the details of those plans remain unknown, and are likely to be highly contested throughout the course of the immigration debate.
One thing we do know: The senators’ bipartisan plan calls for a border commission that would decide whether the border is secure enough before immigrants can begin the process of obtaining citizenship. Meanwhile, the government is allocating more money and personnel to border security than ever before. We’ll examine the role the U.S.-Mexico border plays in the immigration debate, and the way in which “the border,” as it is know, lives in the public imagination.
Then we’ll delve into the political motivations behind the Republican party’s shift on immigration, which seems to have begun shortly after President Obama won re-election in November with 71% of the Latino vote. While many of the Republican Party’s eminences have changed their tune on immigration, the GOP base remains unconvinced. We’ll ask what, if anything, will change how the party’s most fervent supporters view immigration reform.
Joining Chris at 8 a.m. EST on MSNBC will be:
Hilda Solis, former Secretary of Labor in the Obama administration, former congresswoman (D-CA) (2001-2009), served in the White House Office of Hispanic Affairs in the Carter administration.
Rep. Steven Horsford (@RepHorsford), Democrat from Nevada.
Eliseo Medina, International Secretary and Treasurer for the Service Employees International Union.
Aaron Pena (@AaronPena), former member of the Texas House of Representatives (2002-2012), founder of The Hispanic Republican Conference of Texas, Attorney and Senior Vice President of Crosswinds Communications
Jim Antle (@jimantle), senior editor of The American Spectator and is of the Daily News Foundation
Lorella Praeli (@lorellaluciana), director of advocacy and policy for United We Dream.
Aura Bogado (@Aura Bogado) blogger for The Nation.
Ruben Martinez, author of “Desert America: Boom and Bust in the New Old West,” professor of English at Loyola Marymount University.”