The America I Know

My husband came to this country as a teenager with no money and no safety net.

He was an awkward foreign kid trying to find his place. Over time, he fell in love with America: its opportunities, its freedoms, and the idea that hard work could allow him to build the life he wanted.

But he also knows what it feels like to be told, directly or indirectly, that you don’t belong.

I think about him. I think about the soldiers I served alongside, including some who were waiting for their citizenship while wearing the uniform of this country. They raised their hands to serve, believing in the promise of America.

That promise shouldn’t depend on the political winds of the moment.

Right now, immigration has become one of the most politically charged issues in our country. I’m deeply concerned by what I’m hearing and seeing in communities across TX-10, from families living in fear, to business owners struggling with uncertainty, to school leaders and clergy trying to support their communities.

We’ve allowed a broken system to become a political weapon.

And I’ll be honest: the Biden administration failed to act with the urgency this issue required, creating an opening for Republicans to define the conversation. But the answer can’t be an endless political pendulum where one side is accused of ignoring the problem and the other uses it to divide us.

That’s not leadership, and it’s costing lives, breaking up families, and upending communities.

We need a secure border. We need a functioning legal immigration system. We need enforcement that’s professional and accountable. And we need to remember that behind every statistic is a person, a family, a worker, or someone who’s spent years trying to build a life in the country they call home.

Immigrants aren’t a threat to America. They’re part of our story.

Our economy depends on a stable, workable immigration system. The current system fails everyone when it creates uncertainty, backlogs, and instability.

We don’t have to choose between border security and compassion. We don’t have to choose between the rule of law and humanity.

That’s a false choice.

The America I know is a country that can secure its borders, enforce its laws, and still recognize the dignity of people trying to build a better life.

That’s the country worth fighting for.