Senator Charles Schumer met with Irish Ambassador Anne Anderson to discuss the ongoing efforts to pass comprehensive immigration reform in the U.S.
Schumer was part of the bipartisan 'gang of eight' who drafted legislation which would permit a pathway to citizenship for the 11million undocumented in the U.S, including 50,000 Irish.
“After meeting with Ambassador Anderson, I am confident that we can work together in supporting comprehensive immigration reform and work together to help both Irish citizens and American citizens of Irish descent,” Schumer said in a statement.
Ambassador Anderson was recently sworn in by President Obama as the first Irish female ambassador to the U.S.
The pair also discussed trade relations between the U.S. and Ireland and the Peace Process.
“I was pleased to meet with Ms. Anderson, Ireland’s first-ever female Ambassador to the United States,” said Schumer.
Schumer also discussed his efforts to allow for increased immigration from Ireland. “The inclusion of the ‘Schumer E-visa’ in comprehensive immigration reform will provide opportunity for many Irish citizens to work legally here in America, opens the door that was shut to Irish legal immigration in 1964, and carries on the grand tradition of positive relations between Ireland and America.”
The “Schumer E-3 Irish Visa” program allows 10,500 Irish citizens with secondary-level education to find work in the U.S. every year.
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