[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 169 (Saturday, December 18, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10648-S10649]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             THE DREAM ACT

  Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, essential to America's greatness, I 
truly believe, is our respect for the rule of law. The American people 
understand this. For years, they have asked Congress and the President 
to secure the borders and to enforce our immigration laws, but for 
years Congress has refused to do that. Indeed, as part of this 
legislative session, there has been no serious movement to do anything 
that would improve the grievous situation of illegality at our borders. 
So what we have is contrary to that today, when we will be dealing with 
the DREAM Act. Leaders in Washington have not only tolerated 
lawlessness but, in fact, our policies have encouraged it. Americans 
living near the border are the ones who often pay the steepest price. 
Illegal drugs, guns, people pour into States such as Arizona and Texas 
every day. Phoenix has turned into the kidnapping capital of the world. 
Ranchers in the southern part of the State are forced to accept chaos 
as a part of their daily lives. Smugglers, traffickers stream across 
their properties, homes are broken into, livestock killed, families 
placed in danger. Our government has failed in its duty to protect 
these citizens in the peaceful possession of their property.
  Consider the fate of Robert Krentz, the son of one of Arizona's 
oldest ranching families working land that had been in the family 100 
years. His home had been robbed, their livestock slaughtered. On the 
night of March 27, he went to mend a fence and check his water line. He 
reached his brother on the radio to say he was helping someone he 
believed to be illegally entering the country--helping them--and that 
was the last time anyone heard from Mr. Krentz. He was found several 
hours later, shot dead.
  The death of Robert Krentz is sadly just one of the many tragedies 
that could have been avoided if the Federal Government had done its 
job. Instead, when Arizona tried to support the Federal immigration 
authorities, they were sued by Attorney General Holder, and the 
Department of Justice said stay out.
  They were sued for trying to protect themselves because the Federal 
Government would not. Yet here we are in the final days of a lameduck--
some say dead duck--Congress considering a bill that would create a 
major problem to the effective enforcement of immigration laws. People 
are not happy with us, Mr. President.
  I had a little recognition and recalled in the shower this morning a 
little event with Oliver Cromwell with the long Parliament in England. 
He said:

       It is high time for me to put an end to your sitting in 
     this place. You have grown intolerably odious to the whole 
     nation. In the name of God, go.

  I don't think we are odious around here, but I think the American 
people are not happy with us. I think it is time for us to quit trying 
to move political bills in a way that is not appropriate, not through 
the regular process.
  The American people are pleading with Congress to enforce our laws. 
But this bill is a law that, at its fundamental core, is a reward for 
illegal activity. It is the third time we have tried to schedule a vote 
on it, and during this lameduck session it is the fifth version of this 
legislation that has been introduced in the past 2 months. Not one of 
these bills has gone through committee. Not one of them is subject to 
amendment.
  The House passed a bill after 1 hour of debate, having announced it 
being brought up 1 day before. In fact, the version we are now 
considering is the same one that was rammed through the House.
  The majority leader has filled the tree. So, once again, the 
legislation cannot be amended.
  For 2 years, Democratic leaders have ignored the public. They have 
rammed

[[Page S10649]]

through a lot of unpopular legislation, and sometimes--and too often--
the process has been skirted, and it has not been healthy for the 
Republic, which is one reason people have not been happy with it.
  So we are at it again, in these last hours, attempting to force 
through legislation that is not acceptable to the people.
  Proponents of the DREAM Act are sincere, and they insist this is a 
limited bill for young children of illegal immigrants who graduate from 
high school, get a college degree, and join the military. But the facts 
of the legislation are different. The DREAM Act would grant legislation 
to millions of illegal aliens, regardless of whether they go to or 
finish college or high school or serve in the military. It is certainly 
not limited to children. It would apply to people here illegally who 
are as old as 30. Because the bill has no cap or sunset, they will 
remain eligible at any future time.
  Mr. President, I know my good friend, Senator Durbin, who is such an 
able advocate, challenged me last night, or my staff, saying we were 
incorrect in saying that the Secretary of HHS would have the ability to 
waive some of the requirements in the bill. Just for my staff's sake, I 
want to read this part of the bill. He said it wasn't in there. My 
staff explained to his staff why they thought it was in there. The 
waiver section states:

       The Secretary of Homeland Security may waive the ground of 
     deportability under paragraph 1 of section 237(a) for 
     humanitarian purposes or family unity.

  Maybe we can disagree how that might all be played out, but I think 
that is clearly a waiver provision in the bill.
  The amnesty provision--and this is an amnesty bill, because it 
provides every possible benefit, including citizenship, to those who 
are in the country illegally, and I think that is a fair definition of 
amnesty. The amnesty provisions are so broad that they are open to 
those who have had multiple criminal convictions of up to two 
misdemeanors--just not three--and many criminal cases that are felonies 
are pled down to misdemeanors, including certain sex offenses, drunk 
driving, and drug offenses.
  But the bill goes further, offering a safe harbor to those with 
pending applications, even if they pose some risk to the country. In 
other words, if you have filed and sought protection under the act, 
this can stay any action against you in any deportation proceedings.
  I think it is particularly dangerous because the safe harbor would 
apply to those even from terror-prone regions in the Middle East. In 
fact, the DREAM Act altogether ignores the lessons of 
9/11, going so for as to open up eligibility to those who previously 
defrauded immigration authorities, provided false documentation, as did 
many of the 9/11 hijackers on their visa applications.
  Some have suggested this should not be a debate about policy but 
instead about compassion. But good policy, faithfully followed, is 
compassion. I ask my friends who support the legislation, what is 
compassionate about ignoring the public wishes and forcing people to 
live with a lawless border and a lawless immigration system that must 
be reformed and Congress refuses to reform? I ask them, is it 
compassionate to put illegal aliens in front of the line, ahead of 
those who have patiently waited and played by the rules? Is it 
compassionate to act in a way that undermines the integrity and 
consistency of our legal system--a system that is so important to our 
prosperity and liberty?
  The message from the public has never been in doubt. Before we 
consider regular status for anyone living here illegally, we first must 
secure the border. My friend, Ben Nelson from Nebraska, has spoken on 
this for a half dozen years. When he speaks, he has a sign behind him 
that says ``border security first.'' That is what Senator McCain has 
said. He has been a champion of immigration reform. He says he has come 
to understand with clarity that we must have security first.
  That is what the American people have told us, I am convinced. If we 
do not do those actions first, if we pass this amnesty, we will signal 
to the world that we are not serious about the enforcement of our laws 
or our borders. It will say that you can make plans to bring in your 
brother, sister, cousin, nephew, and friends into this country 
illegally as a teenager, and there will be no principled reason in the 
future for the next Congress then sitting to not pass another DREAM 
Act. It will only be a matter of time before that next group that is 
here illegally will make the same heartfelt pleas we hear today.
  It is time to end the lawlessness, not surrender to it. It is time to 
end the lawlessness that is occurring. This is a decisive vote. I urge 
my colleagues to oppose this reckless bill and commit ourselves, as a 
nation, to creating an immigration system that is just and lawful and 
that befits a nation as great as ours.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the time remaining that I 
have not used that has been allocated to the Republicans be divided as 
follows, and not necessarily in this order: Senator McCain, 10 minutes; 
Senator Chambliss, 5; Senator Inhofe, 10; Senator Kyl, 5.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.
  Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, we have it within our power to fix the 
broken immigration system. Last year, approximately 600,000 people were 
arrested entering our country illegally. That is lower than it has 
been, but a determined leadership from the President, from the 
Congress, can, within a matter of 1 or 2 years, end this problem, and 
then we can begin to wrestle with the difficult question of those who 
have been in our country for some time.
  I thank the Chair and yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Michigan is 
recognized.

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