Strengthening America's Security in the Middle East Act of 2019--Motion to Proceed

Floor Speech

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Mr. KENNEDY. Madam President, as my colleagues know, we have about 41,000 Active-Duty servicemembers in the U.S. Coast Guard. They are running vital missions right now in the South China Sea. They are protecting our airspace and ports along about 12,000 miles of coastline. They are performing search and rescue missions that include nearly 1,200 Active-Duty Coast Guard personnel in my home State of Louisiana, the Eighth Coast Guard District. For that reason, I think the members of our Coast Guard need to be paid during this shutdown until we resolve our differences. We need to resolve our differences.

There are some good Members of Congress, but right now, the American people are wondering what they are good for. It seems to me that we ought to be able to reach an agreement that secures the border--which I happen to believe can't be done without a barrier--and that also opens the government.

6, H.J. Res. 1; that the Wicker amendment at the desk be agreed to; that the bill as amended be considered read a third time and passed; and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

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Mr. KENNEDY. I love to hear him talk.

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Mr. KENNEDY. I love to hear him talk. He can talk the ears off a jackrabbit.

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Mr. KENNEDY. He has waxed eloquently many times in this Chamber.

I remember back in 2005, 2006--I was a mere lad--that we had a bill before this Chamber that was called the Secure Fence Act of 2006. Senator Schumer and then-Senator Obama--a rising star--and Senator Hillary Clinton talked passionately and eloquently about how it was impossible to secure a 1,900-mile piece of real estate without having barriers. They talked eloquently. I remember agreeing with them wholeheartedly that legal immigration makes our country stronger, that illegal immigration undermines legal immigration, and that one way to stop illegal immigration--not the only way but one way--was with a border barrier. That was then. This is now.

Now, my esteemed colleague knows full well that his resolution will not accomplish either border security or the opening up of this government because President Donald Trump is going to veto it. It will be a futile, useless exercise. We can go through it if the Senator wants to. He can spend all day trying to teach a goat how to climb a tree, but he is better off hiring a squirrel in the first place. There is a measure before this Senate, and the President has put a proposal on the table that will satisfy many of the concerns of our Democratic friends and will ensure border security.

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Mr. KENNEDY. Of course.

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