[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 164 (Wednesday, September 22, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H4875-H4876]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            STOP PRETENDING

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Crenshaw) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. CRENSHAW. Madam Speaker, I rise today because our border is still 
in crisis. I rise today to bring attention to the dereliction of duty 
by this President occurring at our southern border. Most of all I rise 
to ask this: Can we all stop pretending?
  Can we stop pretending that this administration deserves any benefit 
of the doubt, pretending it is a tough situation beyond their control, 
pretending that this administration, and frankly, the entire Democratic 
Party have any intention of solving the border crisis. Stop pretending 
as if this isn't purposeful, because it is.
  When every single policy measure that you partake in results in more 
illegal immigration, well, then it stands to reason using the powers of 
deduction that maybe you want more illegal immigration. So let's stop 
pretending otherwise.
  And while we are at it, let's also stop pretending that more than a 
tiny fraction of those illegally crossing our border have any valid 
claims to asylum whatsoever. We all know it. We all know that they are 
coming because it is easy and because America is a pretty great place. 
We all know they were trained by their drug cartel handlers to repeat 
certain phrases that make them eligible for the asylum process so that 
they will be given a bus ticket and maybe a court date which they will 
never show up for.
  Let's stop pretending that this isn't just a giant scam, a giant 
abuse of our well-meaning and generous system.
  And also, let's stop pretending mass migration is America's fault. 
Let's stop pretending to listen to outlandish claims of climate change 
causing migration or the tired old refrain of, well, it is American 
imperialistic foreign policy or whatever, and so let's just let 
everybody in.
  And let's stop pretending that this isn't getting exceedingly 
dangerous for us. It is dangerous for our border agents. It is 
dangerous for our border communities. It is dangerous for the children 
being trafficked. It is dangerous for everyday Americans.
  At our border communities, crime is rising. There is greater 
insecurity. There is a spike in COVID cases. And the migrants, who I 
thought my friends on the other side of the aisle claim to care about, 
well, they are paying thousands of dollars to smugglers to take them on 
an exceedingly dangerous journey that often ends in children dead, 
stranded in the desert, or in the Rio Grande.

                              {time}  1115

  The only people who benefit from all of this are the drug cartels. 
They make money off the human misery by using asylum-seeking migrants 
to tie down the border agents so they can move their drugs with little 
to no risk. These smugglers aren't just bringing your generic pot. They 
are bringing fentanyl, bringing enough fentanyl to kill every single 
American.
  Finally, let's stop pretending that the Democrats' pro-open border 
position has anything to do with compassion or kindness. There is 
nothing compassionate about tent cities, nothing compassionate about 
children being trafficked. There is nothing compassionate about firing 
American workers for not getting a COVID shot, putting them out on the 
street while illegal immigrants flood into our country without even a 
COVID test and then get treated to a bus ride or a hotel at the expense 
of the American taxpayer. And then, they probably get hired.
  And guess what? There is nothing compassionate about allowing 
hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants to cut in front of millions 
of

[[Page H4876]]

law-abiding potential immigrants around the world. People with actual 
asylum claims and real persecution are told, well, they are out of luck 
if they can't just walk across our border. Sorry about your civil war 
or your religious persecution. We are out of space. The system is just 
too clogged up now.
  Let's stop pretending about all of it. Let's start telling the truth 
so we can actually solve this crisis.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from 
engaging in personalities toward the President.

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