[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 184 (Tuesday, November 7, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S5373]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                            Border Security

  Now, Mr. President, on another matter, at a hearing last week, the 
Secretary of Homeland Security told our colleagues that ``ensuring the 
safety of the American people is a national imperative and a government 
obligation.'' Secretary Mayorkas is absolutely right about that, but 
for someone who understands so clearly the duty of his office, the 
Biden administration's border czar is utterly failing to execute it.
  After 3 straight years of record-shattering overall border 
apprehensions, the alarming details of the national security crisis 
unfolding at the southern border on this administration's watch are 
coming into clearer focus.
  Last fiscal year didn't just set a new alltime record for border 
apprehensions of individuals on the Terror Watchlist; it saw arrivals 
from countries beyond Latin America triple. CBP personnel are now 
facing a human wave at the border that, according to Mexican officials, 
hails from 120 different countries and speaks 60 different languages.
  For 3 years, policy choice by policy choice, the Biden administration 
has welcomed this historic flood of illegal migration and set the brave 
men and women of Customs and Border Protection up for failure. And it 
is abundantly clear that the solution to the administration's border 
crisis is by replacing bad policies with sensible ones. Even Secretary 
Mayorkas admitted last week that ``policy changes are needed.'' But, in 
reality, the supplemental request he is selling on behalf of the 
President is much less focused on fixing policy than on throwing money 
at the problem. Instead of shutting off the broken asylum incentives 
that are driving record arrivals, the administration wants to pay for 
faster asylum claim processing, a shower of grant funding for 
overwhelmed liberal cities that once proudly declared themselves 
``sanctuary cities,'' and, as Secretary Mayorkas put it, accelerate 
``work authorization for eligible noncitizens.''
  Well, the Biden administration's border crisis has created a fork in 
the road. In the face of record illegal migration, Democrats are 
focused more on getting more people into our country faster no matter 
the cost. Meanwhile, Senate Republicans are focused on securing the 
border and putting the American people back at the forefront of our 
border policy. I am grateful to a group of our colleagues, led by 
Senators Lankford, Graham, Thune, and Cotton, who are working hard on 
proposals to do exactly that.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. MURPHY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.