No One is Above or Beneath the Law
Floor Speech
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Mr. GREEN of Texas. And still I rise, Mr. Speaker, and still I rise.
Mr. Speaker, a monumental motif of American jurisprudence is the basic premise that no one is above the law. It doesn't matter your station in life, it doesn't matter whether you are the President of the United States, and it doesn't matter how much money you have. No one is above the law.
I would also remind us, Mr. Speaker, that there is a compelling corollary to this premise, and it is that no one is beneath the law. No one is above the law, yes, but no one is beneath the law. It doesn't matter how poor you are. It doesn't matter what kind of job you have. It doesn't matter whether you are a janitor or you are a sanitation worker. It doesn't matter. You are not beneath the law in this country. Even if you are an asylee coming here from another country, you are not beneath the law.
I'm so proud, Mr. Speaker, to announce to my colleagues that the D.C. Council will vote on a migrant bill today. It seems that on Tuesday there will be an emergency bill to establish an Office of Migrant Services for the thousands who are being brought here by Governors of Texas and Florida.
These persons in Washington, D.C., they are doing the righteous thing. They are trying to help lawful asylees as they traverse to their destiny. The Governors of Florida and Texas, they would have derailed the Underground Railroad. They would have been the persons who were out looking for those who were seeking freedom.
I am proud of the Mayor of Washington, D.C. I don't know how efficacious the program will be, but I do know that they are making an effort. For this effort, I not only commend them, I will do whatever I can to help them. It is time for us to realize that no one is beneath the law. Asylees are not beneath the law. They are law-abiding persons. The mere fact that they have submitted themselves and seek to have this opportunity to live in this country means that they have broken no law.
I have a question for the Governors of Texas and Florida. Here is my question: You are spending millions to bring people out of their way and to some extent put them in harm's way. I have a question for you: How much will you spend to help them get to their hearings? How much will you spend to help them continue their journey?
Yours is not a righteous cause. Yours is a cause to do what you can to prevent lawful, law-abiding asylees from having their day in court. History will not be kind to you. You ought to be ashamed of what you do.
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