[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 20 (Monday, February 5, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S355-S356]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                          Supplemental Funding

  Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I am heartened and encouraged that there 
is finally a bipartisan agreement to provide Ukraine, Israel, Gaza, and 
Taiwan critical funding to meet their urgent national security and 
humanitarian needs. It should have happened months ago, but Republicans 
demanded that any discussion of this assistance be tied to changes in 
border policy here in the United States, using national security as a 
bargaining chip and gambling, sadly, with people's lives. The future 
and fate of Europe, the Middle East, and the Indo-Pacific hung in the 
balance.
  Last week, the European Union reached an agreement to provide an 
additional $54 billion to stand by Ukraine and shore up its war-ravaged 
economy, bringing the total European Union support to well over $100 
billion and comparable to what the United States has done.
  Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin continues to think he has more resolve than 
we do, reveling in his belief that Western democracy is unable to 
sustain its rejection of Russian tyranny. But more than just Putin, 
other destabilizing forces around the world are watching what we do, 
from Iran to North Korea. We must prove to them our commitment to 
democratic ideals.
  Our response to Putin's aggression has consequences--not just in 
Ukraine or even in Russia but global and historic consequences. In 
fact, NATO's Secretary General Stoltenberg recently issued a very plain 
warning to all of us in the West. He said:

       If Putin wins . . . there is a real risk that his 
     aggression will not end there.

  Putin will continue to wage his war beyond Ukraine. Further, if other 
despots sense Western weakness, they will be emboldened to attempt 
their own aggression.
  Stoltenberg went on to say:

       Our support is not charity. It is an investment in our 
     security.

  It is time for Speaker Johnson and Republicans to realize that 
bipartisanship is the only--the only--way to ensure that Ukraine, 
Israel, Taiwan, and innocent civilians in Gaza will receive critical, 
lifesaving assistance.
  Let's not flinch when it comes to standing up to such obvious threats 
to democracy and the rule of law. The world is watching. That is why we 
must pass this national security package.
  But this agreement also addresses our immigration policy. And let me 
be clear. We do need to fix our disastrous immigration laws and secure 
the border. That has been a fact for more than three decades. That is 
why I have worked for years to pass bipartisan legislation that would 
fix our immigration system.
  Leader Schumer came to the floor earlier and recalled the time when 
the so-called Gang of 8--four Democrats and four Republicans--worked 
for months to put together a measure which passed with a bipartisan 
rollcall on the floor of the Senate. I was honored to be part of that 
effort.
  This bill that we have before us includes important measures, such as 
a one-time increase in green cards and protections for the children of 
H-1B visa holders who age out of legal status when they turn 21.
  I am deeply, deeply disappointed that this bill does not include a 
path to citizenship for Dreamers, recipients of temporary protected 
status, farmworkers, or other essential people who have spent years 
contributing to our society. These individuals fill a critical role in 
America.
  A study showed that undocumented immigrants--undocumented 
immigrants--pay nearly $80 billion in Federal and $40 billion in State 
and local taxes every single year. Many of these immigrants were 
brought to the United States as children. They don't know any other 
home. Yet, without congressional action, they spend each day in fear of 
being deported.
  Madam President, 12 years ago, in response to a bipartisan request 
from myself and the late Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana, President 
Obama established the DACA Program, Deferred Action for Childhood 
Arrivals. It really was a reflection of the DREAM Act, which I had 
introduced over 20 years ago.
  DACA has protected more than 800,000 young people from deportation, 
all of whom arrived in our country as children. These young people are 
known today as Dreamers. They grew up alongside our kids, and many have 
gone on to serve our Nation as servicemembers, doctors, first 
responders. They believe in the American dream.
  I have come to the floor of the Senate 138 times--this is it--to tell 
their stories. I don't think there is any more compelling argument to 
be made for the Dreamers and DACA than to let people know exactly who 
they are, what they have done, and what they dream of.
  This is a story of a young woman who came to America at the age of 4, 
Alyssandra Abrenica. She first arrived in Orange County, CA, from the 
Philippines, and she vividly remembers sharing a single, tiny room with 
all six of her family members.
  While attending college, Alyssandra discovered a passion for 
healthcare, and she applied to the only medical school which was 
accepting Dreamers at the time, Loyola University Stritch School of 
Medicine in Chicago. In 2020, she was accepted to the school and 
received one of the first of the American Medical Association's DREAM 
MD Equity Scholarships, which is given to DACA recipients or first-
generation immigrants to study medicine.

[[Page S356]]

  DACA was always intended to be a temporary solution, and since 
President Obama established the program, Republicans, for reasons I 
cannot explain to you in any political or human terms, have waged a 
relentless campaign to overturn it and to deport these Dreamers back to 
countries they may not even remember.
  Last September, a Federal judge in Texas declared the DACA Program 
illegal. Although the decision left in place protections for current 
DACA recipients like Alyssandra while the appeal is pending, they live 
in fear the next court decision will end their careers and upend their 
lives.
  Until a permanent solution is written into law, Alyssandra's service 
to her community is at risk, as is the service of other Dreamers who 
work as teachers, doctors, engineers, and in so many more important 
professions. The permanent solution is enacting the DREAM Act, a piece 
of legislation which I have mentioned that I introduced two decades 
ago. It would provide a path to citizenship for Dreamers across America 
and allow them to live stable lives and to live out the American dream, 
which they richly deserve.
  Immigrants have been a vital part of the American success story. Our 
Nation still needs them. If DACA is struck down, experts predict that 
our economy will lose over $11 billion a year in lost wages. Moreover, 
as we face a decreasing population and shortages of medical 
professionals, immigrants can help mitigate that gap. Without continued 
immigration, the U.S. working-age population will shrink by over 6 
million by the year 2040. As Americans retire, this could lead to a 23-
percent reduction in monthly Social Security payouts to retirees. 
Remember, these immigrants, even undocumented, and Dreamers are paying 
taxes and paying into Social Security for us, for our children, for the 
next generation.
  To resolve these challenges, we need to create additional lawful 
pathways for immigrants while also providing legal status for our 
undocumented population who have been here for decades. That is why 
good-faith efforts to reform and improve our broken immigration system 
cannot stop with this bill.
  Madam President, I think about the situation with these Dreamers and 
what they are facing and how many of them I have met over the years. 
When I first introduced the bill, they used to come up to me in 
Chicago, wait until it got dark outside so that no one would see them, 
and they would whisper to me: ``I am a Dreamer. Can you help me?''
  It became a cause for me, and certainly I have worked at it. I am 
disappointed that I cannot tell a story of success even greater than we 
have achieved with DACA. But they are still waiting to hear.
  This bill that we are considering gives some help to what they call 
documented Dreamers. Here is how it works. The H-1B visa is offered to 
foreign experts and professionals to come to the United States and work 
for 3 years--renewable 3 years. They can bring their families with 
them.
  A lot of people from China, from India, and from other places come 
and take some critically important jobs in our economy under this 
program of H-1B. They are accompanied by their families. They continue 
to work, extending year after year, in the hopes that eventually they 
will become citizens themselves of the United States through what is 
called a green card. While they are doing this, their spouses cannot 
legally work in many instances, and their children are running a real 
risk.
  You see, when these kids reach the age of 21, they are no longer 
eligible to stay with their families. Now, these kids could have spent 
their whole lives in America because their families came here. They 
could have gone to school and succeeded over and over again. But to 
have a future in America, they need a green card. And if they don't get 
it by age 21, they are eligible for deportation.
  Does that make any sense at all? Well, this bill starts to solve that 
problem. And I certainly support the efforts to solve it and applaud 
those who are behind it.
  But the same conditions apply to Dreamers, brought here as little 
children. They were raised in the United States, went to school in the 
United States, stood up and pledged allegiance to that flag in the 
classroom every single morning. And they asked to be a part of our 
future. They did nothing wrong. They were kids when they were brought 
here. Why they weren't included in this bill, I don't know.
  I am sorry to say, I think there are a few Senators who are just 
dead-set on stopping the Dreamers and DACA every chance they get. What 
a loss that would be to America--for us to lose that talent, that 
drive, that determination, that important part of our future. And what 
a commentary it is on us as Americans that our Nation of immigrants has 
no room for Alyssandra and so many others who can make this a better 
nation.
  There are thousands of them. There were 800,000 under DACA, 
initially; and there are many more who are still eligible. I am sorry 
this bill does not include that provision for the Dreamers. But I will 
tell you this: I will fight for every opportunity I have to bring the 
Dream Act before the U.S. Senate in the hope that one day we will give 
these young people exactly what they deserve--part of America's future.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. CARDIN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Butler). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.
  Mr. CARDIN. I ask unanimous consent that the vote that was scheduled 
to begin in 3 minutes start immediately.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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