[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 116 (Monday, September 18, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9685-S9686]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              SECURE FENCE ACT OF 2006--MOTION TO PROCEED


                             Cloture Motion

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, we will be closing down shortly, but I have 
a few items of business, and I have had a chance to talk to the 
Democratic leader about this next item.
  Mr. President, I now proceed to Calendar No. 615, H.R. 6061. I send a 
cloture motion to the desk.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The cloture motion having been presented under 
rule XXII, the Chair directs the clerk to read the motion.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

                             Cloture Motion

       We, the undersigned Senators, in accordance with the 
     provisions of rule XXII of the Standing Rules of the Senate, 
     do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the motion to 
     proceed to Calendar No. 615, H.R. 6061, a bill to establish 
     operational control over the international land and maritime 
     borders of the United States.
         Bill Frist, Ted Stevens, Robert Bennett, Lisa Murkowski, 
           Mike Enzi, Pat Roberts, Jeff Sessions, Orrin Hatch, 
           Wayne Allard, Thad Cochran, James Inhofe, Trent Lott, 
           John Ensign, Jon Kyl, Tom Coburn, Mitch McConnell, John 
           Cornyn.

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask that the mandatory quorum be waived.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, last week we passed the Port Security 
Improvement Act. Indeed, that means we are one step closer to plugging 
the hole in our port security. We are one step closer to securing 
America's more than 300 maritime ports of entry. That is progress.
  This port security bill that we passed was about vigilance. We are in 
the midst of a war with radical ideologues, militant extremists who 
will stop at nothing to destroy our Nation. They search for our weak 
spots and they seek ways to exploit them. On 9/11 we learned just how 
creative our enemy can be. Just last month we saw it again with the 
plot in Great Britain among terrorists to carry out what has become 
known as Gatorade bombing; that is, the destruction of aircraft and 
human life by using liquids.
  We share a 1,951-mile border with Mexico. It doesn't take much 
creativity to imagine how terrorists might seek to exploit that border. 
It is time to secure that border with Mexico. That is why just a few 
moments ago I filed cloture on the motion to proceed to the Secure 
Fence Act of 2006.
  The overwhelming majority of people who violate our borders do so in 
search of jobs--but not all of them. Some cross to deal drugs and 
commit crimes. Intelligence reports show that even al-Qaida considers 
our borders a key vulnerability. Without effective border control, we 
can't tell those looking for honest work from those bent on mayhem. 
Under the Secure Fence Act, Customs and Border Protection will take 
responsibility for securing every inch of our border with Mexico. 
Engineers and construction workers will erect two-layer reinforced 
fencing along the entire border. Hundreds of new cameras and sensors 
will be installed. Unmanned aircraft will supplement existing air and 
ground patrols.
  The resulting finished network will give us complete operational 
control over our entire border, and it will go a

[[Page S9686]]

long way toward stopping illegal immigration altogether.
  But border barriers alone won't solve our problems. Congress still 
needs to address the illegal immigrants already in the country and 
provide a viable means to meet our Nation's labor needs. While I would 
have preferred coming to an agreement on a comprehensive solution this 
year, I have always said we need an enforcement-first approach to 
immigration reform--not enforcement only but enforcement first. This 
bill is that next step in strengthening our national security and the 
next step in making America safer and more secure.

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