[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 24 (Thursday, February 7, 2019)]
[House]
[Page H1432]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     THE REAL CRISIS AT THE BORDER

  (Mr. CISNEROS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. CISNEROS. Mr. Speaker, a couple days ago, the President gave a 
State of the Union Address that did nothing to promote unity but, 
rather, used fear to further a divisive agenda against immigrants by 
repeating lies about his manufactured emergency at our southern border.
  However, there was no mention of the real crisis. The real crisis 
stems from the President's inhumane separation policies.
  Mr. Speaker, 8 months since his cruel zero-tolerance policy first 
came to light, the number of children who were ripped away from 
families at the border continues to rise. At first, the administration 
said nearly 3,000 children were separated from their parents. Now, we 
are learning that it has been thousands more.
  The administration also claims that they can't easily find the 
parents of the children they ripped away, and they don't even think it 
is worth the time to locate them. This inhumane policy and how they 
treat these children goes against everything this country stands for.
  The President and this administration need to do everything that they 
can to ensure the reunification of these families. The prolonged 
separation of these children has caused irreparable damage to their 
mental health and well-being.
  That, Mr. President, is the real crisis that you have created at the 
southern border.

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