While in search of the American Dream, many immigrants have made unimaginable sacrifices to create a better life for their families. Some arrived to our shores legally with temporary visitor, worker or student visas which they have overstayed.

President Barack Obama's State of the Union Address was a renewed commitment to rebuilding our nation. Strengthening our economy is essential to our stability, and can only be accomplished by creating jobs, rebuilding our middle class, and investing in our future.

I applaud the President’s talk tonight regarding jobs and technology. We must ensure the resilience of the American worker, and the adaptability and innovation inherent in our economy, to keep us at the forefront of global competitiveness.

This is the Silicon Valley way of life and business, where the manufacturing sector employs 1 in 5 workers (more than twice the national average), where breakthrough ideas are cultivated, and where the world’s most successful visionaries and businesses call home.

It is extremely difficult to get a decent job in today's economy without a college degree. As the cost of tuition rises, students are forced to take out larger loans to pay for school. America's college students are finding themselves signing away their destinies just so they can have more opportunities to succeed in life. The future of our children and grandchildren demands that we make it easier for students to free themselves from the trap of student loan debt.

The collapse of the American housing market that began in late 2006 has brought our economy to its knees and left Americans from all walks of life without a home or struggling to keep a roof over their head.

2011 has been a year of harsh economic instability and political turmoil around the world. It is no wonder TIME Magazine has selected “The Protester” as its Person of the Year – people are jobless, helpless, frustrated and just mad as hell.