On the job in
Washington D.G
U.S. Representative for Oregon’s 1st
Congressional District, Suzanne Bonamici
talks about her expectations for the coming
year
"The number one issue Is how do we rebuild
the economy and what policies w ill best i o
that, whether It be better education or housing
or getting more capital to businesses and
stream lining regulations. Those things don't
BY ISRAEL BAYER
be accomplished this year?
STAFF WRITER
S u zan n e Bonam ici: We desperately
U.S. Representative for Oregon’s 1st
Congressional District, Suzanne Bonamici,
is a leader who is on the go. She spends her
time traveling back and forth from her
district and Washington D.C., where she
represents the people of Oregon.
From rubbing elbows with some of the
most powerful people in the country to
meeting with farmers, fishermen and
homeless advocates - Congresswoman
Bonamici’s values represent the people she
serves across Oregon. Her district
encompasses a geographic area that covers
urban Portland, the suburban metro area
and rural environments from Yamhill
County to coastal communities, including
Astoria.
Bonamici recently sat down with Street
Roots in our offices to talk about her work
and expectations for the coming year.
Israel Bayer: Can you talk about
immigration reform and what you think may
Inside
need immigration reform for many reasons.
I will give you three examples of things that
have come up in my district. When I talk to
the hi-tech community, they say it doesn’t
make any sense. People come here from
around the world to the United States to get
an advanced degree and then we make
them go back. They want to stay here and
work here with the skills that they learned,
but we make them go back to their home
country, perhaps work for a company that’s
competing with an American company. So
that doesn’t make any sense.
When I am down in Yamhill County,
people in the agriculture sector say that we
absolutely need agricultural workers there.
The nursery businesses and the agriculture
businesses need workers. If we said today,
“You can’t hire anyone who is
undocumented,” that would have a
tremendous impact on our economy. We
need to address that need.
Then we have really harsh personal
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situations. I have a constituent who is
terminally ill and her sister can’t come here
to spend her final days with her since our
country won’t let her since we are afraid she
won’t come go back home. So that is just
heartless policy.
I’ve been looking at the framework. We
need to do some tightening up of border
security, but a path to citizenship is
something I support. Recognizing the
contributions of those that are here from
other countries is essential.
I am pretty optimistic something will get
passed this session.
I.B.: Illinois just became the fourth state to
allow undocumented immigrants the ability to
access a driver’s license. Should Oregon follow
suit and is there anything the Oregon
legislature can do to help with immigration
reform?
S.B.: Yes. In fact, Oregon did not have
residency requirements for driver’s licenses
until recently. You had to prove that you had
the skills to drive and proof of insurance to
get a driver’s license. Then there was a bill
that passed the Oregon legislature without
my support requiring proof of legal
residency to get a driver’s license. That is
bad policy.
I think it’s been detrimental on many
levels. It’s been problematic for lots of
people — not just those that are
undocumented but others. For example,
those who are transitioning out of
homelessness who don’t have their original
birth certificates, or victims of domestic
violence who flee the home. So it’s very
problematic.
There is also a lot that can be done on
the equity and tuition front and allowing
undocumented immigrants access to higher
education.
I.B.: You have been appointed to committees
on Workforce Protection and Higher
Education and Workforce Training. Can you
talk about what you hope to get accomplished
on these committees?
See BONAMICI, page 5
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SO
■Hi
Section 8
Vendor week
Economic hitman
Salem attempts to
tackle a housing
policy that would
have big impacts
Its International
Vendor Week.
Find out more
and take part.
Author John Perkins
talks economics and
predatory lending
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Page 6 & 7
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