On the Testimony of Former Chief of Border Patrol Raul Ortiz

Floor Speech

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Mr. ROSE. Mr. Speaker, I was troubled to recently hear that former chief of Border Patrol, Raul Ortiz, never spoke to either President Biden or the Vice President and so-called border czar Kamala Harris in the 2 years he headed up security at our southern border.

In a recent interview, Chief Ortiz said he never had a single conversation with either of them. He went on to say: ``That is a problem,'' given that he commanded 21,000 border patrolmen.

I would argue it is more than a problem. At the very least, it is an indication that border security was never and has not been a priority for our Commander in Chief.

It is a bit like abandoning a soldier on the battlefield, Mr. Speaker. Because of the policies of the Biden administration, Ortiz had to endure an unprecedented surge of illegal immigration month after month. In his 2\1/2\ years at the helm, there were more than 5 million illegal immigrant encounters and 1\1/2\ million got-aways during that period. His patrolmen seized more than 50,000 pounds of fentanyl at the southern border by the time of his retirement at the end of last June.

When asked about whether the White House was sending mixed messages to Mexico, Central America, and beyond, he said, without hesitation: Yes.

That mixed messaging was heard loud and clear when President Biden was on the campaign trail in 2019 and said that the United States could take another 2 million immigrants ``in a heartbeat.'' That message got even louder after he took office. In no time, he halted Border Patrol activity, wall construction, and ended the successful remain in Mexico asylum policy.

It is also important to consider that Ortiz was at the helm when title 42 was lifted. All of the experts warned that an unprecedented surge in illegal immigration would follow if that authority was lifted. Nevertheless, the Biden administration fought tirelessly for its end.

Imagine overseeing the border and not getting a single call from those undoing years of border policy. Imagine the stress, the staffing challenges, the human trafficking and drug crime, all happening with the stroke of a pen and without your input.

Under the Biden administration, we have seen an unprecedented abuse of parole authority, resulting in more than 1 million immigrants being allowed to enter the United States. The President clearly kept that 2019 campaign promise, and it appears he kept his border officials in the dark in the process.

Ultimately, a phone call won't solve this crisis, and we don't need new immigration laws to solve the invasion at the southern border. Don't be fooled by the Democrats and the President calling for new legislation and resources. What we need is a President willing to enforce existing law and one who will prioritize the men and women who protect our borders over those crossing them illegally.

The main need for new legislation is to force the President to enforce existing laws and to complete the border wall. The House passed that legislation, the Secure the Border Act of 2023, almost 10 months ago, only to have it sit idly on the Senate side and be ignored.

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