[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 121 (Monday, September 25, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1824]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    COMMUNITY PROTECTION ACT OF 2006

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. JAMES R. LANGEVIN

                            of rhode island

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 21, 2006

  Mr. LANGEVIN. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to call on my colleagues in 
Congress to refocus their efforts on comprehensive immigration reform. 
What we need is not to debate and pass a bunch of bills that duplicate 
legislation already passed by the House--legislation that has little 
chance of passage in the Senate. What we need is to get back on track 
with what the bipartisan 9/11 Commission has repeatedly called for--
comprehensive immigration reform. Only when we enact comprehensive 
reform will we be truly effective in securing our Nation's borders.
  Today we are considering three bills, which do little to fix our 
Nation's illegal immigration problems. We need to do more, and we need 
to do it in a sensible, bipartisan and comprehensive fashion. The 
American people expect Congress to secure our borders, and that extends 
to understanding who currently resides in our country and why they are 
here. Just as importantly, in considering border security legislation, 
we need to focus on securing weapons of mass destruction to ensure they 
do not make their way through our ports of entry. I find it redundant 
and unnecessary that we are going back to consider legislation that has 
already been passed by this body when there is so much unfinished 
business we ought to be focusing on.
  We need to focus on ``smart security'' and develop a comprehensive 
plan. I continue to support the Kolbe-Flake-Gutierrez bill, which is a 
broad and multi-faceted approach to securing our borders. Under this 
legislation, we would hire and train more border patrol agents to 
secure our borders, improve our surveillance technology, and require 
employers to verify the status of their employees. This proactive 
approach ensures we keep those wishing to harm us out of our country 
and allows us to ascertain precisely who is in our country and why they 
are here.
  We also need to refocus our efforts on monitoring exactly which 
materials come through our borders. As the lead Democrat on the 
Subcommittee for the Prevention of Nuclear and Biological Attack, I 
have called for the installation of radiation portal monitors at 
designated ports of entry to screen all inbound cargo for radiological 
or nuclear materials. I am dedicated to ensuring we have this important 
technology at every entry point.
  However, instead of addressing these real problems, the Republican 
leadership has chosen to bring up legislation that we have already 
passed--not because they want a solution to our immigration problem, 
but because they need to distract the American public from their 
inability to accomplish any real reforms. My Democratic colleagues and 
I have fought for increased funding for more border patrol agents, 
detention beds, and immigration and customs agents, but Republicans 
have voted against those efforts 10 times.
  I call on my colleagues to refocus their efforts to enact a 
comprehensive immigration plan. Time in the 109th Congress is quickly 
running out, and we are doing our country a disservice when we focus on 
political rhetoric instead of real solutions. It is time to get back on 
track with what the bipartisan 9/11 Commission has tasked us with--
comprehensive reform.

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