Former Democratic President Bill Clinton acknowledged Sunday that New York City’s progressive “Right to Shelter law” needs to be amended in light of the immigration crisis.
“Gov. [Kathy] Hochul thinks it needs to be modified, and it probably needs to in certain circumstances,” Clinton told host John Catsimatidis on WABC radio’s “The Cats Roundtable” show — adding that Democrats took a big hit in the crisis.
Big Apple Mayor Eric Adams and Hochul argued that the Right to Shelter law was designed to address the local homelessness problem — not the massive wave of immigrants that has relentlessly flooded the city for months after crossing the southern border with Mexico.
The issue is currently in litigation, with advocates for the homeless and asylum seekers opposing any significant repeal of the law.
Clinton said the problem is that immigrants have to wait months to get work permits, so sanctuary rules need to be relaxed to relieve the pressure on the city when it comes to housing them all while they wait.
“It’s broken. We have to fix it… It doesn’t make sense,” Clinton said of the system.
“They come here, and we’re supposed to protect people who don’t get work permits for six months. We need to change that,” he said.
Former President Bill Clinton said he believes New York City’s “Right to Asylum” law needs to be modified amid the current immigration crisis. Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
“They should be working. They have to start working, pay taxes and pay their way. Most of these people are not interested in welfare,” Clinton said.
Clinton said Adams has welcomed her lawyers on issues, like the city’s previous mayor Mike Bloomberg — but not Bill de Blasio.
“At first I tried to help Mayor de Blasio. But he decided that he was .. more progressive than he thought I was — whatever that means,” Clinton said.
The former commander-in-chief acknowledged President Biden’s efforts to make it easier for at least Venezuelan asylum seekers to obtain work permits by allowing them to apply for temporary protection status.
Clinton said the city’s system is “broken” and needs to be changed.Robert Miller
“He tried to do that. Maybe someone will sue him and say, ‘You can’t do that to one group and not another,’” Clinton said.
The former president said, either way, Biden and the Democrats are taking a political hit because of the chaos at the border and an immigration system that is clearly incapable of solving the crisis.
“The [US immigration] the system is built to handle about 400,000 … We should build more housing just above the Rio Grande, and Mexico, I think, will support that,” he said. “Keep people there, and let them in as soon as possible if they’re going somewhere we know they can get a job and they’ll be welcome.”
The former president said proper immigration and inspection cannot be done “with a system that is not well managed and there are not enough facilities along the border.
“The chaos has been very beneficial for the Republicans,” he said.
In general, Clinton said she supports liberal immigration policies like Canada’s and argued that Venezuelans can prove they are aggrieved by a hostile government and meet the criteria set for US asylum.
“We always have a comprehensive offer of entry to America for people who have a reasonable fear for the life and safety of their family and themselves. Many Venezuelans could easily make that case. … Because there is no question that the entire country has been consumed by the collapse of security and effective government in [Venezuelan] Nicolás Maduro’s administration,” Clinton said.
Newly arrived immigrants wait outside a shelter at the Roosevelt Hotel in Manhattan on September 28, 2023. James Messerschmidt for the NY Post
“But they come in here, and under the current law, they have to wait six months to get a work permit,” he said.
Clinton emphasized that immigration is good for America, especially as the country’s birth rate is declining. He said some parts of America – particularly citing areas in upstate New York – are experiencing labor shortages that can be filled by immigrants.
“We have a negative birth rate in America … If that happens, the only way to keep your economy growing is either with immigrants or machines,” he said.
Migrants inside the Roosevelt Hotel on September 24, 2023.GNMiller/NYPost
Considered a moderate in the Democratic Party, Clinton took several jabs at the progressive left – saying their positions on bail reform and crime in New York cost Democrats their House majority.
He said Democrats made inroads and Republicans were punished in some parts of the country during the 2022 midterm elections after the conservative US Supreme Court banned state rights to abortion, overturning the 50-year-old Roe v. Wade decision.
“But the Democrats lost enough seats in New York because of the reaction to the crime problem here and the feeling that – we don’t have – we my party – don’t have a common sense approach to it,” he said.
“Swing votes are for common sense and problem solving.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
