[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 54 (Tuesday, March 23, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1686-S1687]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                            Border Security

  Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I come to the floor today to talk about 
the crisis that is affecting our country right now, and it is the 
crisis at our southern border. Later this week, I will travel to Texas 
to inspect the situation firsthand.
  My Republican colleagues and I will first say thank you to our law 
enforcement officers who are there on the frontlines. Their work is 
always important, and it is especially important at this time.
  The President said on Sunday that he hopes to visit the border. He 
said he hopes to visit the border ``at some point.'' Well, with all due 
respect, the American people don't have time to wait. I invite the 
President to join us this Friday. Come with us. See the situation. 
Witness it firsthand.
  Here are the facts. In the month of February, Federal agents 
apprehended more than 100,000 illegal immigrants crossing our southern 
border. That is more than double the number from last February. So in 
just 28 days--28 days of February--over 100,000 illegal immigrants 
crossed our border.
  You know, illegal immigration numbers usually go down in the winter. 
It rises in the spring and peaks in the summer. We have every reason to 
expect that this is only going to get much worse in the months ahead. 
Even the Biden administration admits it. They admit that we are on pace 
this year to have more illegal immigrants than any year over the last 2 
decades.
  Why is this happening? Well, if you ask the migrants, they will tell 
you the answer. His name is Joe Biden. There are photographs of 
migrants near Tijuana wearing shirts that say: ``BIDEN PLEASE LET US 
IN!''
  They even use the Biden logo--his campaign logo--on their shirts.
  So when did the surge of illegal immigrants start? Well, just after 
President Biden took office on January 20. Before the month was over, 
President Biden had already issued over seven Executive actions on 
immigration alone.
  As I detailed on the floor a couple of weeks ago, President Biden has 
unveiled the most leftwing immigration agenda in the history of our 
Nation. During the campaign last year, President Biden promised lavish 
taxpayer benefits for illegal immigrants. So did Vice President Harris.
  When the moderators at the Democratic debates asked who supported 
free healthcare for illegal immigrants, President Biden raised his 
hand. Vice President Harris also endorsed free healthcare for illegal 
immigrants. President Biden promised not just amnesty but American 
citizenship for illegal immigrants, and 26 Democrat Senators have 
already signed onto the bill that he has proposed.
  President Biden said in February that he will even give the 
coronavirus vaccine to illegal immigrants. You come here illegally; you 
get a free vaccine against coronavirus and free healthcare. No wonder 
illegal immigrants are rushing to our borders.
  But we all remember what happened 4 years ago after President Trump 
was elected. Before he even issued most of his immigration policies, 
illegal immigration plummeted. It went down by 40 percent the first 4 
months of his Presidency. It was called ``The Trump Effect.'' It 
happened even before his policies went into effect. It was because he 
sent a clear message to the world. He said: Don't come here illegally 
or we will send you right back home. That message was heard around the 
world.
  Now we are getting very different messages from this Biden White 
House. As a result, we have ``The Biden Effect,'' which is the exact 
opposite of what ``The Trump Effect'' did. We are having historic 
increases in illegal immigration. They are promising free healthcare, 
free education, free vaccines, offering amnesty, and even citizenship 
for illegal immigrants.
  Democrats just passed a bill that lets illegal immigrants get $1,400 
checks. Senator Cotton and I tried to stop it. Every Democrat in the 
U.S. Senate voted against our amendment. They voted to give hard-earned 
taxpayer dollars to people who aren't even in the country legally.
  The White House says publically that we will not expel any illegal 
immigrants under the age of 18. That is what they have said publicly. 
The White House Press Secretary even mocked that idea. As a result, 
massive numbers of teens and children are crossing the border.
  Secretary Mayorkas has told the whole world that if you are under 18, 
you get a free pass. He went on television last week and said: ``We 
will not expel your child. . . . We will care for that child and unite 
that child with a responsible parent.
  In that same interview, he said: ``I hope [children] will not 
undertake that perilous journey'' to our border.
  But as long as liberal policies are in place, it is a guarantee. They 
will undertake the perilous journey. They will risk traveling at the 
hands of smugglers, cartels, and human traffickers to get here.
  Now we have a system that is overwhelmed. Our border agents can't 
keep up. Immigration and Customs Enforcement just spent $86 million to 
rent hotel rooms--hotel rooms for families who illegally crossed the 
border; $86 million for hotel rooms for over 1,000 families.
  It has been reported that more than 100 illegal immigrants who tested 
positive for the coronavirus have been released into Texas. They were 
told to quarantine after they traveled through the country to their 
preferred destination in the United States. We don't know where they 
are now or how many people they infected along the way. It could be in 
Texas. It could be anywhere. It is very concerning to people all across 
the country, and yet the White House is still in denial.
  In fact, last week, the White House Press Secretary had to correct 
herself. She accidentally used the word ``crisis'' when talking about 
the border. A reporter asked her if that meant the White House was 
finally acknowledging that it was a crisis. She said no. She said it 
was just a ``challenge.''
  Joe Biden promised us he would always tell us the truth. Yet the 
Biden White House is trying to mislead the American people about one of 
the most important issues that is facing our country today. It is not 
working. The American public knows this is a crisis. Democrats may 
think that this is some political game. In reality, this is a 
humanitarian crisis. Thousands of children are being harmed because of 
this.
  Liberals talk a lot about how much compassion and empathy they feel. 
The truth is, the policies that they have don't lead to compassionate 
outcomes. They lead to some very cruel outcomes. As Secretary Mayorkas 
admits, the journey north from Central America is a ``perilous'' one. 
It is not safe for children. Large numbers of children who make the 
journey are trafficked, sexually assaulted, or recruited by gangs. If 
this year is like previous years, thousands and thousands of children 
are going to be harmed because

[[Page S1687]]

they make the journey north. There is nothing compassionate about the 
open border policy of this administration.
  It didn't have to happen. It should not have happened, and the blame 
rests squarely with President Biden and the open-border Democrats. In 
less than 2 months, President Biden has already shown himself the most 
open-borders President in our history as a Nation. It is no surprise 
that the whole world has noticed.
  This crisis will not fix itself. We need to take action. Republicans 
have a series of commonsense solutions to improve this situation 
immediately. They include enforcing the law, securing the border, and 
restoring the policy called ``Remain in Mexico.'' Without these, the 
Biden border crisis is going to continue to undermine our Nation's 
safety and its security.
  I yield the floor
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Nebraska.
  Mr. SASSE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I and then, 
after me, Senators Leahy and Peters be allowed to complete our remarks 
in their entirety before the scheduled vote.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.