O'Malley, back in Las Vegas, promotes immigration reform
'Democratic presidential candidate Martin O'Malley on Sunday criticized the argument that immigrants take American jobs, calling it an example of the "failed thinking of the past."
O'Malley, a former governor of Maryland, made his comments at a forum organized by the Fair Immigration Reform Movement and The Nation, a magazine. The event invited all presidential candidates from the Republican and Democratic parties to speak, and two candidates on the Democratic ticket, O'Malley and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, accepted. About 350 people attended the event at the Linq Hotel, billed by organizers as a nonpartisan forum.
"I represent a different generation," O'Malley said. "... The generation that I represent understands that comprehensive immigration is in the best economic interests of the United States as a whole."
O'Malley spoke about his family's immigrants roots, noting that his great-grandfather — also named Martin O'Malley — came to the U.S. from Ireland in the 1880s with no money.
O'Malley spoke of prejudice immigrants faced in that era, adding that today's immigrants aren't the first to face ugliness and scapegoating. He kept a sign from the late 1800s as a reminder that says: "Help wanted. No Irish need apply."
"It's not so much about where you came from," O'Malley said. "It's about where you're going."
O'Malley also took aim at billionaire businessman Donald Trump, a Republican candidate for president. Calling him "carnival barker Donald Trump," O'Malley said, "The enduring symbol of our nation is not a barbed wire fence it is the Statute of Liberty."
Trump has said he would build a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico — and make Mexico pay for it.
Sanders, an independent senator seeking the Democratic nomination, is speaking at the forum Monday. Sanders also has a rally this evening in North Las Vegas.'
http://www.reviewjournal.com/politics/omalley-back-las-vegas-promotes-immigration-reform
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