[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 95 (Tuesday, June 4, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3940-S3941]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
Border Security
Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, a couple of weeks ago at a White House
press briefing, the President's Press Secretary was asked why the
President isn't doing anything on the border, given the fact that he
has the authority to act unilaterally. And the White House Press
Secretary responded:
But why should he have to do it unilaterally?
Why should he have to do it unilaterally? It was, perhaps, a typical
response from a White House that would like to portray itself as the
victim of the border crisis rather than the cause, a White House that
would prefer Congress take action on the border rather than run the
risk of taking action itself and annoying some Democratic voters. But
it was an outrageous statement, nonetheless.
Why should he have to do it unilaterally? Well, for starters, because
President Biden is the President and thus bears a special
responsibility for our national security and because, as President, he
has the authority to take a number of measures to help secure our
Nation's border. For a President not to do anything in the face of the
kind of crisis we are dealing with is unconscionable. But most of all,
President Biden should be taking action because he is responsible for
this border crisis.
Why should he have to take action unilaterally? Because he created
this border crisis unilaterally. On the day he took office, the
President began dismantling the border security policies of his
predecessor, and illegal immigration began surging in response. It has
[[Page S3941]]
never stopped. The President has presided over not 1, not 2, but 3
successive years of recordbreaking illegal immigration. With more than
a million and a half illegal crossings so far this year, it is entirely
possible he could end up presiding over a fourth.
Those recordbreaking immigration numbers I mentioned don't even
convey the full magnitude of the problem. In addition to the staggering
7.8 million-plus illegal border encounters recorded under President
Biden, we have also seen huge numbers of ``got-aways,'' and those are
individuals that the Border Patrol saw but was unable to apprehend. Of
course we have no idea how many unknown ``got-aways'' there have been,
and that is a serious national security problem.
When turning yourself in to the Border Patrol with a claim for asylum
is likely to result in years of essentially legal permanent residence
or, as we discovered this weekend, de facto amnesty, it is especially
concerning that we have hundreds of thousands of individuals choosing
not to turn themselves in and escaping into the interior of the
country. Some of them may simply be in search of a better life, but it
is highly likely that others may have more malign intentions.
U.S. Border Patrol Chief Jason Owens, in a March interview with CBS
News, said the number of known ``got-aways'' is keeping him up at
night. This is his quote:
That is a national security threat. Border security is a
big piece of national security. And if we don't know who is
coming into our country and we don't know what their intent
is, that is a threat. And they're exploiting a vulnerability
that's on our border right now.
That same month, FBI Director Christopher Wray told the Senate Select
Committee on Intelligence:
We are seeing a wide array of very dangerous threats that
emanate from the border.
Let me repeat that. From the FBI Director: ``We are seeing a wide
array of very dangerous threats that emanate from the border.''
He also noted, alarmingly:
There is a particular network that has--where some of the
overseas facilitators of the smuggling network have ISIS ties
that we're very concerned about.
There is a particular network that has--where some of the
overseas facilitators of the smuggling network have ISIS ties
that we're very concerned about.
As I said, it would be unconscionable for any President to stand by
and watch a crisis like the one we are facing at our southern border
without taking action. The fact that President Biden has allowed this
national security crisis to rage for 3-plus years unchecked is a
betrayal of his responsibilities as President.
While protecting our national security may not have motivated this
President, protecting his election prospects apparently does. With
polls showing immigration as a top issue, Democrats have been rushing
to give the impression that they are serious about border security. Now
we are hearing that President Biden may be announcing measures to
secure the border, possibly as soon as today. I will believe it when I
see it, especially given this weekend's report that the Biden
administration has been offering mass amnesty to hundreds of thousands
of individuals whose asylum cases have been closed without a decision.
It does sound like the President will be announcing something, and I
hope it will involve some real reforms. But it is disturbing that it is
taking the fear of losing an election to motivate the President to take
action on a national security crisis that has raged for more than 3
years, and it raises serious questions about how long the President's
interest in border security will last. If he wins another term, will he
still care about the border, or does it take an election to keep him
motivated about his national security responsibilities?
At any rate, if concern for our national security won't do it, let's
hope that his fear of defeat in November will indeed motivate the
President to actually get the situation at our southern border under
control. Given his record so far, though, I am not holding my breath.
I yield the floor.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. TUBERVILLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Padilla). Without objection, it is so
ordered.