Joe Biden Remarks on Executive Actions on Immigration Transcript February 2

Joe Biden: (02:12)
Well, let me begin by saying that all three of us, the Vice President, the new Secretary of Homeland Security, that our hearts go out to the families of the FBI special agents, two of whom were killed and three of whom were injured today in Florida. I was briefed on this tragedy earlier today, and I know the FBI has gathered information about how this happened, what happened, but I can only imagine how these families are feeling today. One of the things when you are in a combat zone in the military or you’re an FBI agent or a police officer, every family just when they put that shield on and go out in the morning dreads the possibility of a call, receiving that phone call. My heart aches for the families. I’ve not had an opportunity, nor will I try today to contact them, but they put their lives on the line, and it’s a hell of a price to pay. Every single day, every time these folks get up, by and large, the vast, vast majority of these men and women are decent, honorable people who put themselves on the line. We owe them.

Joe Biden: (03:46)
But the purpose of my asking you here today is I want to congratulate the new secretary. Secretary Mayorkas is going to take on an easy job. Nothing to it, Homeland Security, and going to deal. Looking forward to his leadership and working with Congress on a lot of issues, including an immigration bill that has, I think, great support in both chambers. Today, I’m going to sign a few executive orders to strengthen the immigration system, building on the executive actions I took on day one to protect Dreamers and the Muslim ban and to better manage our borders, and that’s what these three different executive orders are about.

Joe Biden: (04:34)
I want to make it clear. There’s a lot of talk with good reason about the number of executive orders that I have signed. I’m not making new law, I’m eliminating bad policy. What I’m doing is taking on the issues, 99% of them, that the last president of United States issued executive orders I thought were very counterproductive to our security, counterproductive to who we are as a country, particularly in the area of immigration. This is about how America’s safer, stronger, more prosperous when we have a fair, orderly and humane legal immigration system. And with the first action today, we’re going to work to undo the moral and national shame of the previous administration that literally, not figuratively, ripped children from the arms of their families, their mothers and fathers at the border, and with no plan, none whatsoever, to reunify the children who were still in custody and their parents.

Joe Biden: (05:39)
The second action addresses the root causes of our migration to our southern border, and the third action. The third order I’m going to be signing orders a full review of the previous administration’s harmful and counterproductive immigration policies basically across the board. And so with that, I’m going to sign the first order, which is a re-establishment of the NRACC task taskforce and our reunification of families. It removes the stain on our reputation for what those separations caused. That is the first order.

Joe Biden: (06:23)
The second order I’m signing is creating a comprehensive regional framework to address the causes of migration and to managed migration throughout the North and Central America, and to provide a safe and orderly processing of asylum seekers at the United States border. And the third order I’m signing is restoring the faith in our legal immigration system and strengthening immigration and inclusion efforts for new Americans. As my grandfather would say, the grace of God and the goodwill of neighbors will reunite these children and re-establish our reputation as be a haven for people in need. Thank you very, very much.

Speaker 2: (07:31)
Thank you, [crosstalk 00:07:31].

Speaker 3: (07:31)
Mr. President, what’s your message to these families that have been separated.

Speaker 2: (07:31)
Thank you. Thank you.

Speaker 4: (07:31)
[inaudible 00:07:31]. Sir, Mr. President.

Speaker 2: (07:31)
Thank you. Thank you, let’s go. Thank you.

Speaker 3: (07:43)
What was the action about that you [inaudible 00:07:46], Mr. President.

Speaker 2: (07:44)
Thank you. Thank you.

Joe Biden: (07:44)
We’ll have plenty of time to talk about it.

Speaker 2: (07:44)
Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you, guys.