[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 40 (Thursday, March 2, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S622-S623]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                            Border Security

  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, during my time in the Senate and even 
prior, when I had the honor of serving as Texas attorney general, I 
spent a lot of time in our border communities working with the mayors, 
county judges, private land owners, nongovernmental organizations, and 
law enforcement at every level. The majority of these men and women 
have lived along the Texas-Mexico border for their entire lives. They 
have witnessed the impact of policies from Washington from different 
administrations. They have seen spikes and dips in migration. They have 
reaped the benefits of legitimate trade and commerce, and they have 
dealt with the consequences of security failures. In short, they have 
seen a lot. But virtually everyone agrees that they have never seen 
anything like President Biden's present border crisis.
  Over the first 2 years of the Biden administration, we have broken 
one record after another when it comes to migration. Here are some 
shocking statistics. U.S. Customs and Border Protection logged nearly 
2.4 million border

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crossings during a single year. During 1 month alone, the Agency 
encountered more than a quarter of a million migrants.

  The scope and scale of this crisis is absolutely unprecedented, and 
it is having a major impact on our border security missions. When 
highly trained and professional Border Patrol agents are spending their 
time passing out meals and doing administrative tasks, they aren't able 
to do what they train for, what they want to do, which is to stop drugs 
like fentanyl, which killed more than 70,000 Americans last year alone.
  I was able to meet with some parents who lost their teenage children 
to fentanyl poisoning last week in Hays County school district right 
outside of Austin, TX. It was among the most emotional events I have 
ever attended, because these parents had happy, healthy teenage 
children going to high school, who took something they thought was a 
relatively innocuous pill, only to find out it was contaminated with a 
minute amount of fentanyl, and it took their lives. These parents want 
us to stop the flow of these drugs across the southwestern border.
  When the Border Patrol is not on the frontlines, they are not able to 
stop the transnational criminals, the cartel members, or other people 
on the terrorist watch list from sneaking into the United States.
  A few weeks ago, I traveled with a bipartisan delegation of Senators 
to El Paso and then to Yuma--Yuma, AZ, a southwestern part of Arizona--
a sleepy, little agricultural community. The Border Patrol Sector Chief 
told us that they encountered people speaking as many as 200 languages 
from 176 different countries at that little, sleepy border community in 
southwestern Arizona.
  As it turns out, there is a major airport in Mexicali, in northern 
Mexico, just across from Yuma, and people were literally flying there 
from around the world and turning up at the Border Patrol sector and 
claiming asylum, people from 176 different countries. These are people 
who are exploiting the vulnerabilities in our asylum system--something 
we can and we should fix, but so far, there has been no cooperation in 
order to fix our broken asylum system.
  Over the years, I have had the pleasure of taking a number of 
colleagues to the Texas southern border to see these dynamics up close 
and learn from the experts on the ground.
  The distinguished Presiding Officer comes from a border State. I must 
say, my impression is that for many people who don't live in a border 
State or have the experience we have as border State Senators, most of 
what they think they know about the border they have learned in the 
movies or by reading novels; in other words, it is not reality. That is 
why it is so important to go to the border.
  As I mentioned, in January, a bipartisan group of seven of our 
colleagues joined me in El Paso and then Yuma. But in El Paso, a place 
where President Biden finally visited the day before we got there, the 
circumstances were so severe that migrants were sleeping on city 
sidewalks in freezing temperatures because shelters were at capacity. 
They have been overwhelmed like everything else on the border. My 
colleagues were able to see for themselves the impact of this crisis on 
law enforcement and on the nonprofit organizations like Catholic 
Charities and others, which were trying to help these migrants in very 
difficult circumstances.
  It was a busy and productive trip. But I am eager to return this 
evening to the Texas southern border with another group of colleagues. 
Senator Thune from South Dakota, Senator Wicker from Mississippi, 
Senators Fisher and Ricketts from Nebraska, and Senator Britt from 
Alabama will join me for a series of tours and meetings in the Rio 
Grande Valley starting this evening. We will receive a tour of the 
border from some of the dedicated law enforcement officials who protect 
it. We will get an up-close look at one of the Border Patrol's 
processing centers and learn more about the challenges they are facing 
due to the sheer volume of migrants crossing the border every day.
  One reason for this increased volume is not because of increased 
poverty or violence in communities in Mexico or Central America; it is 
because of what the Border Patrol calls the pool factors--that is, the 
impression that you can come to America's doorstep, and you can make 
your way into the United States and live the rest of your life because 
there are no consequences to coming to the United States outside of a 
legal, orderly, humane process. That is why we are seeing this 
unprecedented border crisis as a result of those policies and that 
perception, which is reality.
  We will talk to local law enforcement officials as well--the 
sheriffs--and the private land owners on how this flood of humanity is 
impacting their communities. We will receive briefings from Federal, 
State, and local law enforcement about efforts to secure the border.
  We had Attorney General Garland testify in front of the Judiciary 
Committee yesterday, and we asked him about the 108,000 Americans who 
died as a result of overdoses from drugs that come across the 
southwestern border. He said: Well, we are doing everything we can. 
Then eventually he said: Well, we need more money. Then he said: Well, 
this isn't really my job. He said that is the job of the Department of 
Homeland Security. In other words, he was passing the buck. Meanwhile, 
the flood of humanity continues, and the flood of deadly drugs 
continues as well.
  It is important that as many Senators as possible see and understand 
the dynamics of what has happened. If we are going to have a shot at 
fixing this mess, which can only happen on a bipartisan basis, then 
everyone needs to know what we are up against.
  I appreciate my colleagues--these colleagues, as well as other 
colleagues--who have taken the time to visit the border and learn from 
the people who know it best. They are the true experts. I am grateful 
for everything they do to promote the security and prosperity of our 
border communities.
  I am especially thankful that they take the time to share their 
perspective with our other Senate colleagues so we can work together 
to, hopefully, finally address this crisis.