[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 37 (Thursday, February 29, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H747-H748]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        A TALE OF TWO PRESIDENTS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Kelly) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, there is an old adage that 
goes something like: There are no problems in our family; there are a 
lot of things we don't talk about.
  For years, we have been talking about a crisis at our southern 
border. In 2016, candidate Trump talked about building a wall to 
protect American citizens from the surge that was taking place. He was 
laughed at. He was continually laughed at by the current administration 
until the polling came out that said the number one concern of the 
American people now is illegal immigration and the fact that we are 
being overwhelmed at both our southern border and our northern border.
  Now, why do I bring that up? Well, the southern border is about 2,000 
miles long, and I believe today former President Trump will go to Eagle 
Pass and President Biden will go to Brownsville to take a look at what 
is happening.
  The current administration is now acknowledging the fact that maybe 
there is a problem down there and maybe we should be taking a look at 
what is happening. Polls do cause people to react.

                              {time}  1100

  It is truly a tale of two Presidents.
  Now, the northern border, which is being totally ignored, is 5,500 
miles of border. It is the longest continuous border between two 
countries anyplace in the world. It is virtually unwatched. Eighty-five 
percent of the terror watch list suspects caught at ports of entry come 
through the northern border.
  More than 12,200 people were apprehended crossing illegally from 
Canada into the United States last year. That is a 241 percent increase 
from the previous year.
  Northern border encounters are up 41 percent from last year. Seventy 
percent of illegal crossings in 2023 happened in New York, Vermont, and 
New Hampshire. This is called the Swanton sector where there is a surge 
when it comes to fentanyl coming across our border and killing hundreds 
of thousands of our citizens.
  There are already more northern border land encounters in fiscal year 
2024, which is October 2023 until right now, than in all of 2021. To 
date, in 3 months, 44,801 have come across. Northern border encounters 
in December 2023 and in January 2024, 31,150 of them, are more than all 
of fiscal year 2021.
  At some point, whether you like it or not, this problem is taking 
place in real time, in real areas of the United States of America and 
on your watch, Mr. President. I am sick and tired of hearing that 
Congress needs to address these problems when the executive office--and 
I would just mention to people that we are the lawmakers. The executive 
branch are the enforcement people of the laws that are already passed 
and on the books.
  How can you totally ignore a situation and say that the real problem 
is

[[Page H748]]

that Republicans haven't stepped up to take responsibility for this?
  This administration, without anything else, can end catch and 
release. They can reinstate the remain in Mexico policy, enter into the 
asylum cooperative agreements, end parole abuses, detain inadmissible 
aliens, use expedited removal, and rein in taxpayer-funded benefits for 
all illegal aliens.
  That is right, Mr. and Mrs. Taxpayer, you are paying for all these 
people who are here illegally. They ought to send you a thank you note 
for your hard work and issue a proclamation of suspending re-entry.
  Mr. Speaker, as we watch what is happening in this country today, 
everything that you see happening right now, the concern that you see 
happening by our colleagues on the other side of the aisle is because 
the polls now indicate that the American people are awake and are aware 
of this administration's failure to enforce the laws of the land. It is 
that simple. It is the polling that is driving them to react. It is not 
the fact that it has been happening; that is incidental.
  If you can ignore it long enough, then it will go away.
  No. You can't ignore it any longer. Horrific things are happening to 
our own citizens as this administration sits back and says that there 
is really no problem and that this is being made up by the Republicans.
  I encourage our colleagues on the other side of the aisle to remember 
that our oath of office is to the citizens of the United States and not 
to a particular party or to a particular officeholder.
  When we ignore our basic responsibilities, then we have a huge 
problem in the United States of America.
  I encourage all my fellow Americans to forget about being woke and 
wake up. Your country is being taken from you, and we are watching it 
happen.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Steel). Members are reminded to direct 
their remarks to the Chair.

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