The recent collapse of a border deal in Congress coupled with U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez’s uncertain political future has immigration advocates worried. Long before the federal corruption charges against him, Menendez made history as the first Latino member of Congress from New Jersey, with few that could rival his institutional knowledge of immigration policy.
While Menendez, a Democrat, still hasn’t declared whether he’s running for reelection, concerns have been raised that any successor is strong on immigration issues.
“We have yet to see any strong immigration proposals around comprehensive immigration proposals from leading candidates Andy Kim or Tammy Murphy, and I think that’s one of the biggest things that set the work of Senator Menendez so far apart is his advocacy around the work on comprehensive immigration reform,” Nedia Morsy, the director of strategic projects at Make the Road New Jersey, said.
