OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Providing for Consideration of H.R. 5230, The Secure the Southwest Border Act of 2014; Providing for Consideration of H.R. 5272, Prohibitions Relating to Deferred Action for Aliens; and Providing for Consideration of Motions to Suspend the Rules

Floor Speech

Date: Aug. 1, 2014
Issues: Minors and Children Immigration

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Ms. DelBENE. Mr. Speaker, the influx of unaccompanied children across the southern border is a serious humanitarian situation that requires immediate action. We desperately need Members of Congress to work together in a bipartisan way to develop an effective and humane course of action to address this problem, and I am disappointed that we are playing politics
with this crisis instead of developing solutions.

The rule we are considering today would allow us to consider two bills. The supplemental appropriations bill is an irresponsible funding measure that fails to address the true needs of this crisis while also making irresponsible cuts of over $400 million to FEMA's disaster relief fund, impacting the Federal response to disasters.

The other bill needlessly punishes innocent children, known as DREAMers, and would do nothing to address the humanitarian situation caused by violence in Central America. This deportation-only and enforcement-only approach to changing our Nation's immigration law is misguided and will do absolutely nothing to prevent our broken system from spinning further into dysfunction.

In my district, there are businesses, farmers, faith leaders, law enforcement leaders, and families who have been asking Congress for years to find solutions to our broken immigration system.

I helped introduce a comprehensive immigration reform bill, H.R. 15, to help these constituents who deserve a functional immigration system that they can rely on; instead, House Republicans have decided to make today's divisive bill a priority. They want to make sure that absolutely nothing is done to improve overall our immigration system.

After more than a year of refusing to act on

comprehensive legislation, this is unacceptable, and I urge my colleagues to vote ``no.''

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