Value Our Families Coalition Opposes Cuccinelli Nomination
- Contact
Washington, DC – The following is a statement from Value Our Families, in response to the proposed nomination of Ken Cuccinelli for director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
President Trump has proposed to nominate Ken Cuccinelli to lead USCIS. This is the latest of Trump’s attempts to pack the administration with people who have propagated anti-immigrant actions and xenophobic sentiment.
During his time in the Virginia state legislature and as attorney general, Cuccinelli sponsored bills to force employees to speak English in the workplace. He tried to prevent hard-working undocumented students who grew up in Virginia from receiving in-state tuition. He even advocated for repealing birthright citizenship to strip American-born children of immigrants of their constitutional rights. Cuccinelli has previously compared immigrants to rats, and he has indicated that Congressman Steve King (R-IA), who was removed from his committee seat for racist statements, is “one of my very favorite congressmen.”
The mission of USCIS should be to grant immigration and citizenship benefits to Americans and future Americans so that families can be reunited, visit with one another, and so that immigrants can further integrate into our society. Yet, this administration seeks to turn the agency into an anti-immigrant enforcement agency. With Cuccinelli at its head, we would see more policies seeking to deny visas, green cards and citizenship, and caging migrant children in ICE facilities.
It is clear that Cuccinelli’s potential nomination is yet another threat to this country’s immigration system. The American people deserve leaders who find humane and practical solutions, not more of the divisive policies that are causing chaos on our borders, and stripping our nation of its values and ideals.