GOP SENATORS: The Boston Bombings Are No Excuse To Stop Immigration Reform

Republican Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham urged lawmakers Friday not to use the Boston bombings as an excuse to delay or halt progress on the comprehensive immigration bill now pending in the Senate.

Here's their statement:

“In the wake of this week’s terrorist attack in Boston, some have already suggested that the circumstances of this terrible tragedy are justification for delaying or stopping entirely the effort for comprehensive immigration reform. In fact the opposite is true: Immigration reform will strengthen our nation’s security by helping us identify exactly who has entered our country and who has left – a basic function of government that our broken immigration system is incapable of accomplishing today. The status quo is unacceptable. We have 11 million people living in the shadows, which leaves this nation vulnerable to a myriad of threats. That is all the more reason why comprehensive immigration reform is so essential. By modernizing our system of legal immigration, identifying and conducting background checks on people here illegally, and finally securing our border, we will make America more secure.”

McCain and Graham's admonition come in response to the warnings of several vocal immigration foes, who have argued that any plans to legalize undocumented workers and change the visa system should be put off until more is known about the two suspects in the Boston bombing attacks.

Other members of the "Gang Of Eight," including Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) have similarly cautioned their Senate colleagues to avoid conflating the attacks with the immigration issue.

And in an interview with Bloomberg's Al Hunt Friday, "Gang of Eight" member Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) echoed Graham and McCain, detailing how the bill is "important for national security."

"First, we're going to make a dramatic investment in our border with Mexico," he said. "Secondly, everyone, the 11 million people who were basically living in the shadows in America have to come forward, register with the government, go through a criminal background check. That will make us safer."