Border Crisis

Floor Speech

Mr. CORNYN. This Wednesday, it is reported President Obama will be traveling to my State of Texas, but he will not visit the border between Texas and Mexico, the site of what he has himself called a growing humanitarian crisis. Instead, on his 2-day trip, he will fund-raise and apparently deliver remarks on the economy. It is a little ironic, given the economic boom in Texas relative to the rest of the country, that the President would choose to come to Texas and to lecture us on what he thinks we should do about the economy, but my hope is he would come to learn from Texas and not just give another lecture.

Today, the White House Press Secretary, Josh Earnest, said the President was ``well aware'' of the crisis on the border. As the distinguished Presiding Officer knows, I recently visited McAllen, TX, myself 1 week ago today, and it is heartbreaking to see these young children without their parents. It is difficult to hear the horrific stories about the journey these children made from their homes in Central America through Mexico, dodging assault, kidnapping, various and other sundry crimes, and then finally making their way into the United States. So it is easy in one sense to see why the President might prefer to stay away rather than to come, learn, and listen for himself, particularly in light of the sad stories he is going to hear or he would hear if he decided to come.

But I think the problem speaks for itself when the President, who would prefer to hang out with campaign donors and other political supporters, would decide not to have any interaction with those who are directly affected by his failed policies--in this case the failed immigration policies that led to a full-blown humanitarian crisis.

Instead of taking the easy way out, I wish the President would step up and lead--and he would learn, perhaps, something he did not already know or that he thinks he knows and which is absolutely wrong. It is puzzling, and it is frustrating that the President of the United States chooses the path he apparently is going to take rather than one that will help him solve problems.

We know the President last week stood in the Rose Garden in front of the American people and at the same time he asked for money to help address this problem--and it is reportedly on the order of $2 billion--in the very next breath he announced he is looking at expanding the very same policies that have helped create this crisis, create the impression there will be no consequences for coming to the country in violation of our laws. It is disheartening, it is disappointing, and it is extremely dangerous.

This week, during his trip to Texas, it would take the President less than 1 hour on Air Force One to visit the border and to see what I and so many of my colleagues have seen firsthand, a, very sad situation that could have been prevented. But now that it has happened, it needs to be addressed in a bipartisan way. He would see what I saw, which is children separated from their parents with no certainty about the future, children who have endured unspeakable hardships and cruelty at the hands of some of the most vile thugs on the planet, the cartels, who view them as a commodity as they do drugs and weapons. They view these children as a commodity, something to make money off of.

The Border Patrol in South Texas and along the border is doing a very professional job under very difficult circumstances, but they are simply overwhelmed. Repeatedly, we will hear of the Border Patrol--law enforcement officers--basically having to divert their attention from doing those law enforcement responsibilities and duties to basically taking care of children, making sure they are fed, their medical condition is being attended to, and they have a safe place to stay while going through the procedures there at the border.

I commend the Border Patrol and all of our Federal law enforcement agencies for making their resources and time stretch as far as possible for these children while the Commander in Chief has decided to do something else.

I realize how controversial and polarizing this issue can be, but at least in some respects it should take precedence over partisan politics and fundraisers.

What I don't understand is how the President can send us a bill for $2 billion--which he reportedly is going to do tomorrow, apparently asking us for some changes in the existing law--and then to simply be missing in action when it comes to learning for himself the very facts that are necessary for him to be able to make the case not only to Congress but to the American people for why both of those were necessary.

President Obama evidently needs a wakeup call, and visiting the border and learning firsthand about the severity and causes of this ongoing crisis will be that wakeup call.

Again, I urge the President to visit the border this week during his fundraising trip to Texas.

I yield the floor.

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