Business Leaders Applaud Obama's Action On Immigration
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Some Illinois business leaders said they are glad President Barack Obama has taken executive action to protect millions of immigrants from deportation, but they also want to see Congress step up with more sweeping changes to immigration laws.
Republican members of the Illinois congressional delegation have said Congress should take the lead on overhauling immigration laws, and Sam Scott, former CEO of Corn Products International, said business leaders in Illinois agrees.
The Illinois Business Immigration Coalition – which includes present and former executives of the Illinois Chamber of Commerce, Crate & Barrel, and Exelon, among others – welcomed Obama's actions on Thursday.
"The numbers reflect that Illinois would be benefitted by comprehensive immigration reform, in the hundreds of millions of dollars, and the country much more so than that, just from the overall economic impact," Scott said. "So it makes economic sense, it makes humanitarian sense, and we believe it's the best thing for business."
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Scott said the IBIC still hopes Congress acts to change immigration laws to give more people a path to citizenship.
He noted, while the Senate approved sweeping changes to immigration laws last year, the House has yet to act.
Scott said it was vital, therefore, for the president to act to help undocumented immigrants step out of the shadows, and move forward.
"We are hoping that the window opens up sometime in the first quarter – late first quarter or early second quarter – where the Congress does take this issue up, and perhaps now as a result of something moving forward, decides to try to modify it, and make it better," he said.
He said it's bad for the country when families are kept apart, and bad for the economy when undocumented immigrants are forced to work in the shadows.
