GOP bill would make English official language of US

Immigration hard-liner Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) on Friday reintroduced legislation to make English the official language of the United States.

King argued that establishing an official language like other countries would provide consistency and unity.

{mosads}”There is no more unifying force in the world than a common form of communications currency,” King said. “It is essential that we make assimilation of our legal immigrants a top priority, and learning English is an important first step in that process.”

King’s bill would require all official U.S. functions to be carried out in English and create an English language requirement for the naturalization process.

The House passed a similar measure in 1996, but it never received action in the Senate.