Following reports that Republican leaders in Congress have indicated willingness to shut down the federal government if President Obama takes executive action on immigration to keep families together, SEIU President Mary Kay Henry issued the following statement:

The lives of millions of families, mothers and fathers, children, hard-working people and students are not political pawns. Obstructionists in Congress are treating millions of families' future as a bargaining chip in their political game. The news that President Obama may act as soon as next week to provide relief to as many as five million aspiring Americans is good news and the right thing to do for our nation.

"This isn't about political games. It's about families like Hector's. Hector is a Massachusetts college student and aspiring engineer who is plagued with fear that his mom, who has been in the United States for 10 years, will be torn away from him and from his 8-year-old sister, a U.S. citizen. These are the families who are hurt by our broken immigration system and Republican leaders want to pour salt on their wounds with their obstructionist agenda. Their stories are why we support the president's commitment to keeping families together through executive action.

"Republican leaders in Congress need to realize now that this is not about politics, it's about people. This is about families who have long made America their home. Senator McConnell and Speaker Boehner should understand that they are choosing party politics over working families, Latino and immigrant communities and what's right for America."

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