An administration hostile to our values and at odds with our heritage

Children caged. Families torn apart. A commander-in-chief who jokes about opening fire on migrants.

And now the president is contemplating a plan that would drastically limit or even bar refugees from most parts of the world.

We face a human rights crisis, the product of an administration hostile to our values and at odds with our heritage.

But Donald Trump is not the only culprit here. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his Republican colleagues are also complicit, having acquiesced to the president’s abuses.

How do we resolve this crisis, repair our broken immigration system, and reclaim our moral standing?

We reunite families. We protect human rights. We enact comprehensive immigration reform, including a path to citizenship.

For my family and me, this issue is profoundly personal. I would not be in the United States if this nation had not opened its doors to my mother and all four of my grandparents.

I’m glad we’re here. Our country is richer in every way — economically, culturally, intellectually — because we have welcomed people from all over the world to contribute their talents to America.

Donald Trump rejects our shared history and seeks to divide us. But most Americans recognize that our diversity makes us stronger.

Contrary to the president’s attacks, immigrants commit crimes at lower rates than native-born Americans, create millions of jobs, and contribute more in tax revenues than they consume in services. Here in Colorado, immigrant-owned businesses employ more than 100,000 workers.

Those facts haven’t stopped Trump from demonizing immigrants or prompted McConnell to allow a vote on immigration reform.

Why? Because politicians like Trump and McConnell would rather play politics than solve problems.

That’s been obvious for a long time. It’s a lesson I learned here in Colorado.

In 2003, when Republicans controlled the state legislature and the governorship, they eliminated health benefits for documented immigrants. I opposed that decision and cosponsored a law to reverse it. In 2004, I authored a law to protect immigrant children from losing coverage.

Two years later, the GOP attempted to ban birthright citizenship. I opposed that effort as well.

At the same time, anti-immigrant activists were pushing a constitutional amendment — an end-run around what was by then a Democratic legislature. Their initiative would have prevented Colorado’s undocumented residents from receiving any non-federally mandated services, without exceptions for children, public health, or public safety.

I worked closely with the initiative’s opponents to keep that anti-immigrant measure off the ballot and out of the state constitution. But the price of our success was a compromise I’ve regretted ever since.

Gov. Bill Owens, who’d called the legislature into special session, agreed to a statutory ban on certain public benefits — specifically, benefits that were already off-limits under existing federal law. We provided exceptions for children, public health, and public safety, and we avoided a constitutional amendment, which would have been far more difficult to fix.

Many Republicans, including then-State Rep. Cory Gardner, denounced our compromise for not going far enough. They pointed out that we hadn’t actually banned any benefits — and they were right.

What we should have done, I realized later, was adjourn on Day 1. The governor would likely have called us back into session, and the anti-immigrant forces might have headed back to the ballot the following year. But those are risks I wish we’d taken, rather than indulge — and by extension legitimize — the Republicans’ premise.

The vote I rue most came on a separate bill, requiring cities and counties to report criminal arrests to federal authorities if the arrestee was believed to be undocumented. I did not think local governments should be allowed to thwart federal law, but tasking local law-enforcement officers with this responsibility was a serious mistake.

The measure proved dangerously broad and expensive. It produced unintended consequences I deeply regret.

What it did not produce was any movement toward comprehensive immigration reform — a cause I’ve supported throughout my career. In 2006, I cosponsored a resolution urging Congress to enact such reform.

I’ve continued that push ever since, in concert with other advocates for immigrant rights. But time and again, the GOP has refused to budge.

Although we staved off the worst of the opposition’s efforts here in Colorado in 2006, I’m sorry we engaged in negotiations at all. When the other side shares no genuine interest in progress, negotiations are pointless.

The same holds true in Washington. Donald Trump has already signaled where he stands, not with a dog whistle but with a bullhorn. He has repeatedly demonized immigrants and refugees, described asylum as a “hoax,” and declared the country “full.”

Cory Gardner endorsed Trump for reelection. He backed the president’s fake emergency declaration and — despite his promises to the contrary — refuses to stand up to McConnell.

Comprehensive immigration reform will never come without a change in leadership at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue. As Colorado’s next senator, I’ll do everything I can to repair the damage this administration has caused and deliver the reform we need.

Andrew Romanoff served as the speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives and as the president and CEO of Mental Health Colorado. He is a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate from Colorado.