Sunday, November 17, 2013

Will we show a little classic American hospitality?

When people say Senator Schumer loves attention, they don’t have the wrong idea.  It is very rare to see, on any issue, that Senator Schumer doesn’t have an opinion, or even if he isn’t stating his opinion, just simply giving a statement or a comment to what is going on. It is even rarer to see, when a time of need arises, Senator Schumer not giving his support where it is needed. So it should come to no surprise that when disaster struck the Philippines, Senator Schumer showed his support for efforts to help Philippine people stay in the states while their home was recovering, while at the same time putting his two cents into a rumor about a democratic primary. This is just two of the many things Schumer does and issues he speaks on behalf.
On Friday, Senator Schumer made a statement with Cardinal Dolan asking that the Department of Homeland Security allow an estimated 200,000 Filipino citizens to stay in the United States while their homeland recovers. With the Philippines just having gone through one of the worst natural disasters ever recorded with the death toll at 3,621 and still rising, it is not fair to send people back there now to suffer. Schumer is calling it an act of “classic American hospitality.”1 What they are asking for specifically is a blanket extension, which is temporary extended status, which would allow the Filipino people here to continue doing what they came here to do in the first place, work, school, etc. This extension would last as long as it takes for the Philippines to recover. The Department of Homeland Security has failed to comment on this request but Schumer expects them to comply with this request being that he is the chairman of the subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees and Border Security.
About two weeks ago, Senator Schumer declared at a fundraiser dinner that he would fully support Hillary Clinton if she ran for president in the 2016 election. He believes it is her time and that she can take the party and country far. As a result of these feelings and a policy that was put in place in 2005, Schumer is against a Democratic primary. On Thursday, Schumer made a statement responding to rumors that Senator Elizabeth Warren from Massachusetts would possibly run against Clinton, saying that Democrats should avoid primaries because “primaries are really a killer.”2 Not to say that Warren wouldn’t be a good candidate but Schumer believes it is not strategically smart to run against people in your own party. Schumer went on to say, “it would be great if Democrats would unite around [Clinton] early, we don’t’ have a primary on the Democratic side and let the Republicans beat the daylights out of each other,” Schumer said.
Schumer has had a lot of experience in government and I think it is fair to say that throughout his time he has learned how to balance his state and Washington well. No senator or representative is perfect, but it seems to me that there is always something Senator Schumer is talking about but it is never too much of one without the other. I believe Schumer chooses his issues wisely and plays a really good politician.





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