Nothing happens here in this building, in the House of Representatives, if there's no demand from outside the Capitol.

I have only one loyalty and that's to the immigrant community.

It is so difficult to, day in and day out, hear these incredibly painful stories of the destructive nature of our broken immigration system.

According to the study, approximately 16.7 million U.S. workers born in Latin America had a combined gross income of $450 billion last year, of which 93 percent was spent locally.

There is this kind of sense in the immigrant community, first we were going to do immigration reform, but then 9/11 happened.

As far as income tax payments go, sources vary in their accounts, but a range of studies find that immigrants pay between $90 billion and $140 billion in Federal, State, and local taxes.

Because the truth is, today's immigrants, as they have for generation after generation, work the longest hours at the hardest jobs for the lowest pay, jobs that are just about impossible to fill.

According to the Privacy Rights Center, up to 10 million Americans are victims of ID theft each year. They have a right to be notified when their most sensitive health data is stolen.

So given that reality, let us not cast that all of the problems and ills of our society are somehow upon the immigrants who have come to this country.

I will argue until my last breath for a pathway to citizenship that is quick and efficient because I want to end this chapter. I want to end it...But let me say, conversely, I am as committed as any Republican to ending illegal immigration as we know it...They want to end it. So do I.

I think the real, fundamental problem that the Republicans have is, 'How do we get meaner, how do we get nastier with immigrants, so that we can take a smaller group,' now apparently led by Senator Cruz - I mean, maybe he's gonna be the next Speaker of the House. Because it's quite clear that Mr. Boehner has no control over this conference.

The next step has to be the necessary step. It's always to put the immigrant community and the civil rights movement ahead of partisan politics.