{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://pallone.house.gov/press-release/pallone-statement-president-obama%E2%80%99s-announced-plan-extend-protections-immigrant", "Pallone Statement on President Obamas Announced Plan to Extend Protections to Immigrant Families", "2014-11-21", "2014", "2014-11", "Democrat", "House", "NJ", "Frank Pallone", "P000034", "pallone.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) released the following statement in response to President Obama\u2019s announcement that he will use an executive action to adjust the country\u2019s deportation policies, focusing on undocumented immigrants convicted of serious crimes, rather than those with strong ties to the U.S.:\n\u201cI applaud the President for taking an important first step to help fix our country\u2019s broken immigration system.\u00a0 In the face of House Republicans crippling inaction, President Obama has acted decisively and within his legal authority to help keep families together and ensure that everyone living in this country is playing by the same rules.\u00a0 These executive actions will help secure our border, hold bad actors accountable, and ensure that families are not being ripped apart.\n\u201cWhile President Obama\u2019s announced plan will expand protections to millions of undocumented immigrants in this country, it is no substitute for a comprehensive solution.\u00a0 This is a critical step in the right direction, but there is much more that needs to be done.\u00a0 Congress has a responsibility to act to address this issue in a comprehensive manner.\n\u201cSpeaker Boehner and Republican leadership in the House have repeatedly asserted that they intend to take up immigration reform.\u00a0 However, it has been over a year since the Senate passed a bipartisan immigration bill, and House Republicans have yet to schedule a single vote on the issue.\u00a0 It is the job of Congress to legislate, and immigration reform needs a legislative solution.\u00a0 I urge my Republican colleagues to stop making excuses and start working with Democrats so that we can finally address the problems facing our nation\u2019s immigration system in a meaningful way.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://pallone.house.gov/press-release/pallone-statement-president-obama%E2%80%99s-announced-plan-extend-protections-immigrant"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.7996638305485249, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}