WASHINGTON, D.C. – FWD.us President Todd Schulte issued the following statement on the latest ruling from the Parliamentarian on the inclusion of a pathway to citizenship in reconciliation:

“We wanted to provide an update and the next steps forward after the Senate Parliamentarian’s announcement yesterday—and we believe that this can, must and will be the year.

“We continue to believe that a pathway to citizenship is permissible—and just—via reconciliation. We are, of course, so many years past when we should have provided a pathway to citizenship, and it is deeply wrong that the United States continues to benefit from the monumental contributions of immigrant families while denying them the dignity of protection, stability, and peace of mind that they deserve. We are heartbroken by this news, and stand with all of you who feel the same.

“We know Democratic lawmakers are working to present additional options to include vital reforms in the reconciliation process, which would allow millions of immigrants who are already living and working in the U.S. the ability to do so with stability. This would have a substantial and immediate budgetary and fiscal impact—and we are confident these can and will be included in the reconciliation package. Two things can be true at the same time: this would transform millions of lives and also not be all that is needed—which is a pathway to citizenship. We still believe this is the year, and we will hold Congress and the Biden Administration to their commitments to pass legislative protections for undocumented immigrants. Anything less is a failure with dire human and political consequences.”