[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 83 (Wednesday, June 12, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4351-S4352]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
IMMIGRATION REFORM
Mr. REID. Mr. President, last night the Senate advanced a bipartisan
immigration reform bill that will be good for national security and
very good for our economy. It will be good for American citizens as
well as those who aspire to one day become citizens.
It is truly gratifying to see the momentum behind this commonsense
reform proposal. Eighty-four Senators voted to adopt the motion to
proceed to this legislation--a very strong vote. By comparison, the
Senate failed to advance an immigration reform bill just 6 years ago
when only 46 Senators voted to end debate on that measure.
It is a sign of progress that the legislation now before the Senate
has not been stopped procedurally. I hope we are allowed to proceed on
this legislation without being blocked by some arcane Senate rule and
that we can finish this legislation and send it to the House of
Representatives.
I applaud the Gang of 8 for their bipartisan proposal. That is how
the Senate used to work. They worked hard. They have worked through
hundreds of different proposals. After the Gang of 8 finished their
work, they took it before the Judiciary Committee. There were over 100
amendments--many more than 100 amendments. They adopted 46, and some 40
amendments were Republican amendments that were adopted. Chairman Leahy
conducted a fair markup, and no one disputes that. So I commend the
Gang of 8 for allowing the bill to get to the Judiciary Committee, and
I thank the Judiciary Committee for now giving us this proposal and
bringing it to the floor, and now Democrats allowing us to proceed on
this legislation, as well as Republicans.
Our goal now is to pass the strongest legislation possible, with as
many votes as possible, while staying true to our principles, then
await what the House is going to do. The Speaker has said he wants a
bill that will allow the Democrats to vote. That is good news because
in the House, for the last two Congresses, there have been very few
opportunities for the Democrats to vote on substantive legislation.
The Speaker has said he will only allow legislation to pass over
there that has a majority of the majority. That means only Republicans.
If they don't have enough Republican votes, they are not going to bring
up a bill for a vote. So I am very pleased the Speaker would say that.
It is important we understand the procedure we have used for 230-plus
years in this body: We pass something here, they pass something in the
House, we go to conference and work out our differences.
So I understand we have a long road before us and more work will be
necessary to get this bill across the finish line. I truly understand
that. I know some of my Republican colleagues will
[[Page S4352]]
support this bill if they feel confident what is in the bill adequately
addresses the need to secure our borders. I agree the legislation
focused on border security a lot. I think that is important, and I am
glad it did.
Reform that takes significant steps to stop illegal crossings is
important, and reform that does not take significant steps to stop
illegal crossings will fail. That is why I so admire what was done by
the Gang of 8 and the Judiciary Committee in regard to that issue. They
have done a terrific job on border security.
We should all also acknowledge the progress the Obama administration
has already made to secure our borders. Illegal border crossings are
down 80 percent. That is no small accomplishment. Yesterday I received
a letter from my colleagues, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee
Pat Leahy, and the chairman of the Homeland Security Committee Tom
Carper, detailing the tremendous strides we have made toward a more
secure border.
As described by the Wall Street Journal, illegal entries nationwide
are at a four-decade low. We have less crossings now than we had at any
time during the last 4 years, and the number of illegal entrants who
sneak into the country through the southern border and successfully
elude law enforcement--so-called ``got aways'' is what they are
called--is down 86 percent. Smarter technology, physical barriers, and
double the number of agents on the border have made this achievement
possible.
We must ensure those who come to America seeking a better life do so
in compliance with our laws. The measure before the Senate builds on
the progress we have made by allocating even more resources for border
security infrastructure, and that includes patrol bases, unmanned
vehicles--yes, drones--helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, sensors, x-
rays, cameras, and more. This legislation also includes additional
funding for the prosecution of those who are caught crossing illegally.
The legislation also establishes two strict but attainable statutory
border security goals: to prevent 90 percent of illegal entries and to
monitor the entire southern border, not just high-risk sectors of the
border. Chairman Leahy and Chairman Carper agreed in their letter that
this legislation will reduce illegal entries by reforming our legal
immigration system.
This legislation will make it virtually impossible for undocumented
people to work, so they will no longer have an incentive to enter
illegally.
This is what my two colleagues said in their letter:
We need to stop focusing our attention on the symptoms and
start leading with the underlying root causes of illegal
immigration in a way that is tough, practical, and fair.
That says it all. This bill does that.
There is one thing this bill does not do and should not do: It does
not and should not make the path to citizenship contingent on attaining
border security goals that are impossible to measure. That would leave
millions who aspire to become citizens in indefinite limbo. We have to
move past this.
Six years ago we tried to do something about it and the situation
only got worse. This legislation is critical. If we made those goals
impossible, the legislation would be a failure. This would give
opponents of citizenship in the Senate an opportunity to prevent our
border security goals from being met in order to block the path to
citizenship. I am concerned that some who oppose the very idea of
reform see these triggers as a backdoor way to undermine the
legislation, and we must be very careful in recognizing that people are
trying to do that with this legislation now before this body. I believe
some Republicans with no intention of voting for the final bill--no
intention, regardless of how it is amended--seek to offer amendments
with the sole purpose of derailing this vital reform.
I commend Senators--Democrats and Republicans--who sincerely want to
make this proposal stronger by enhancing its border security
provisions. So I look forward to hearing ideas over the next few days
on amendments--ideas to make our country safer and more secure. If that
is the intent, we will certainly look at it, and I hope we can move
forward as expeditiously as possible.
I am glad colleagues, both Democrats and Republicans, are engaged in
this debate and are interested in offering amendments, but I hope those
amendments will be constructive in nature. We have come too far and the
country needs this legislation too badly to lose sight of our purpose
now.
As Martin Luther said, ``Everything that is done in the world is done
by hope.'' There is no better example of that than this legislation
because hope is what it is all about. As Martin Luther said,
``Everything that is done in the world is done by hope,'' and I
certainly believe that regarding this legislation.
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