[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 3]
[House]
[Page 3251]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         PLAYING PARTY POLITICS

  (Mr. AGUILAR asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. AGUILAR. Mr. Speaker, last week we were pushed to the brink of 
shutting down the Department of Homeland Security, the agency tasked 
with safeguarding our homeland from threats here and abroad, all 
because Congress couldn't do its job. Only weeks after horrific attacks 
in Paris and with news of ISIS every day, the House majority risked the 
national security of our country to play party politics.
  We cannot continue to govern in crisis mode, threatening the safety 
of American lives, jobs, and our homeland, so my colleagues can score 
political points. Enough is enough.
  Threatening to shut down DHS was reckless, unnecessary, and 
completely avoidable. The House majority's games have forced Congress 
away from its most critical priority, working for middle class families 
to create jobs, improve transportation and infrastructure, invest in 
education, and protect programs for our seniors. It is time to stop 
playing political games and get back to what the people elected us to 
do.

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