Transcripts For CSPAN2 Key Capitol Hill Hearings 20140626

Vote vote the presiding officer are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their votes . If not, the ayes are 57, the nays are 39, and the motion is agreed to. Mr. Cornyn madam president . The presiding officer the republican whip. Mr. Cornyn madam president , if we could have order in the senate, please. The presiding officer the senate will be in order. Mr. Cornyn thank you, madam president. I want to spend a few moments this morning talking about Realistic Solutions to the ongoing crisis along americas southern border. Obviously i come from a border state where we have 1,200 miles of common border with the nation of mexico, which of course has been the gateway now to this humanitarian wave of children, unaccompanied children coming from Central America into the United States. Ill talk more about that in detail, but i first want to comment on something that the majority leader said this morning in his opening remarks. With his what has now become trademark high pesh olie high pesh olie and disregard for facts the majority leader suggested that the republican platform was deport first, find solutions later, or never. I find that offensive and its certainly not true, and i can just assume that the majority leader has had other things that have taken his attention and hes ignored completely the concrete solutions that i and others have been promoting, some of which ill talk about here in a moment. But the last thing id say specifically to this really offensive and untrue comment of the majority leader this morning is if youre truly concerned about this issue, senator reid, you might want to focus on members of your own party. After all, no less than Vice President joe biden has said of the unaccompanied minors flooding across from the u. S. Mexican border, he said qoas its necessary to put them back in the hands of the parent in the country from which they came close quote. He went on to say once an individuals case is fully heard, if he or she does not qualify for asylum, he or she will be removed from the United States and returned home. Thats Vice President biden. Perhaps the majority leader should talk to him. Or he could talk to former our former senate colleague, hillary clinton. She said they should be sent back as soon as it can be determined who responsible adults in their families are, close quote. Thats former secretary of state hillary clinton, in all likelihood the democratic partys nominee for the president of the United States in 2016. Perhaps the majority leader should talk to her. Or he could talk to the secretary of Homeland Security under whose per view this issue purview this issue falls most directly who said quote under current u. S. Laws and policies, anyone who is apprehended crossing our border illegally is a prior to for deportation, regardless of age close quote. Perhaps the majority leader should pick up the phone and talk to him. So rather than make offensive politically motivated allegations, perhaps the majority leader should get his facts straight, talk to leaders in his own Political Party and then work with us on this side of the aisle to try to find some Realistic Solutions. As the insurgency rages in iraq and the border between syria and iraq has collapse end and attention here in washington is turned to other parts of the globe, i can tell you without a doubt that today attention of my constituents in texas is still very much focused on whats happening on our southwestern border. And this surge of unaccompanied more than children that are making a dangerous and treacherous journey from Central America through mexico and ending up on our doorstep. First of all, though, the administration when this began the facts began to unfold said that this human that human smuggling operations are responsible for creating a Misinformation Campaign and thats why were seeing this surge of unaccompanied minors. There may actually be an element of truth to that if you think about it. Because if the human smuggling operations, the drug cartels, organizations like the zetas and the associated gangs that work with them make money on each and every migrant that passes through these corridors of Human Trafficking and human smuggling, then they probably are making money, more money the more people that come. They probably make more money the more children and women and other migrants who they kidnap and hold for ransom. So there is some element of that. But then weve been told by the administration that the surge is entirely the result of Gang Violence and poverty in Central America. And that it has nothing to do with president obamas policies or his perceived commitment to our Immigration Laws, including the enforcement, that only the executive branch can do. A few days ago, however, secretary johnson, the secretary of Homeland Security, published what he called an open letter to the parents of children crossing our southwestern border. In which he implicitly acknowledged that the president S Immigration policies or the perception that he was less than committed to enforcing those policies have indeed become a magnet for illegal border crossings. Referring to the socalled Deferred Action Program that president obama announced in june of 2012, you remember the president said i have a pen and i have a phone. Basically said im going to go it alone, im not going to work with congress anymore. That was a product of that mentality and that approach by the president. But referring to that socalled Deferred Action Program that president obama announced in june of 2012, secretary johnson felt compelled in this open letter to inform his readers that the u. S. Governments deferred action for childhood arrivals often called daca, daca, does not apply to a child who crosses u. S. Border illegally today, tomorrow, or yesterday. Doesnt apply. Secretary johnson reiterated this point in the very next paragraph when he said quote there is no path to deferred action or citizenship or one being contemplated by congress for a child who crosses our border illegally today. Now, if the sole driver of the border crisis was, in fact, Central American violence and poverty, or smuggling organizations, theres no reason to believe that secretary johnson needed to clarify the details of u. S. Immigration policy. After all, if the migrant surge has nothing to do with u. S. Policy, as the white house initially insisted, then clarifying what that policy is wont affect it at all. But its become simply undeniable that president obamas policies, including his unilateral Deferred Action Program, as well as the perception that he is less than seriously committed to enforcing current law, and, in fact, has ordered secretary johnson to investigate and recommend a further relaxation of his enforcement policies, all of this has played a huge role in creating the perception to tens of thousands of unaccompanied children that you should risk your life and travel unaccompanied in the hands of the cartels to the United States because there wont be any consequences associated with it. Its that perception that the president continues to create by his silence, that is, the magnet for this ilLegal Immigration. Dont take my word for it. According to an internal department of Homeland Security memo, it says quote the main reason the subjects chose this particular time to migrate to the United States was to take advantage of the new u. S. Law that grants a free pass or permit. In other words, they came because itself widespread perception that unaccompanied minors and women traveling with children would be allowed to stay, even after crossing the border illegally. Well, i think theres more to this story. In fact, what weve learned is that women traveling with children are frequently given a notice to appear once they are processed by the Border Patrol. A notice to appear for a hearing and a court that would then determine any claims of asylum or then determine whether they could stay in the United States or they would have to return to their country of origin. This is called a notice to appear. Strangely enough, the vast majority of immigrants that get a notice to appear never show up. It makes you wonder about the ones who do show up because theres absolutely no followthrough. This is what is perceived as being this permission or free pass or permiso in spanish. Meanwhile, a study of the department of Homeland Security office of science and technology directate directorate concluded that unaccompanied minors are quote aware of the relative lack of consequences they will receive when apprehended at the u. S. Border vrntle r border. Relative lack of consequences. In other words, nothing happens to them. If you make it here, youll be able to stay. Thats the perception. Again, its puzzling to me that even though the administrations own documents show a clear reason for the surge, they initially continue to offer the public a shifting narrative. Now, there is no doubt that drug and gangrelated violence in Central America is bad. Its a matter of tremendous concern for u. S. Policymakers, its heart breaking, and its something that i propose we try to address. I had a great conversation, for example, on the floor a couple days ago with the senior senator from california, senator feinstein, who said maybe theres something we can do as weve done in the past, countries like colombia, countries like mexico and elsewhere where we have worked with our partners there to try to help them restore security in the rule of law, and thats certainly something i look forward a conversation i look forward to continuing. But the fact of the matter is the violence in Central America didnt just begin a couple of years ago. As a matter of fact, the murder rates in guatemala and el salvador were higher in 2009 than they were in 2012 and 2013. But the massive spike in ilLegal Immigration by unaccompanied minors didnt start until 2012. The very same year, not coincidentally when the president announced his unilateral Deferred Action Program. Again, creating the perception that if you came here, you would be able to stay, and thus there is no wonder that people felt like the floodgates had opened, creating the humanitarian crisis and overwhelming the capacity of local, state and federal authorities to deal with all of these children. By fiscal year 2013, the number of unaccompanied minors detained on our southern border had grown to nearly 25,000, up from 6,500 two years earlier. From 6,500 to 25,000 in two years time. According to the new york times, from october to june 15, 52,000 unaccompanied minors were quality at the caught at the american border with mexico, twice the number for the same period in the previous year, and there are estimates that it could turn out to be 60,000 or more this year, could double next year. And you begin to wonder where does this end, how does this end . So between the president s refusal to enforce our Immigration Laws and his evershifting explanation as to the source of the ongoing crisis, its no wonder that the president has lost so much credibility on this issue. Indeed, if the president wants to know why he hasnt been able to pasS Immigration reform in the house and the senate, all he has to do is look at the fact that people have lost confidence in his willingness to enforce the law. I know the senior senator from new york has suggested well, we should pass an Immigration Law and just postpone its Effective Date after president obama leaves office. Thats a shocking statement, it seems to me, that has been reiterated by the majority leader, senator reid. So there is an enormous amount of distrust about the federal governments commitment to enforce the law. So i dont care what the law might ultimately be. If the American People dont believe the president and the attorney general and the executive branch will enforce the law, weve lost their confidence entirely and we will never be able to improve and fix our broken immigration system, something i am commited to do. But given all the different narratives coming out of the white house concerning the surge of unaccompanied minors, i think it would be a good thing for the president to directly address the issue. Hes sent Vice President biden to Central America. That was a positive step. I know secretary johnson has visited the Rio Grande Valley and some of these Detention Centers for unaccompanied minors. Thats a positive step. Hes written this open letter to the parents of children in Central America, discouraging them from sending their children on this long, perilous journey from Central America to the United States through these drug smuggling and human smuggling corridors controlled by the zetas and other cartels, but yesterday i introduced a resolution with my friend, the junior senator from florida, senator rubio, that calls on the president to do five things. Number one, it calls on the president to publicly declare that the Deferred Action Program he unilaterally announced in june, 2012, will not apply to the recent waves of children who have recently crossing our southwestern border. Now, thats the same thing that secretary johnson has been saying and others, but its different coming from the president of the United States. It will be covered by the press. It will be communicated to parents in Central America. Dont send your children to the United States and turn them over and make them an additional part of this humanitarian crisis and subject them to all the perils that i have talked about repeat edly of that treacherous trip from Central America to the United States. Secondly, this resolution calls on the president to publicly discourage parents in Central America and mexico and elsewhere from sending their kids on one of the most dangerous mieg migration journeys in the world third, it calls on the president to fully and faithfully enforce u. S. Immigration laws. Now, i dont know what the facts are, but i do know some of the members of the house of representatives, Luis Gutierrez has very recently said if we cant pasS Immigration reform that suits him, he wants the president to take further unilateral action, declining to enforce our Immigration Laws. That just contributes to the impression thats causing this wave of humanity that is coming to the United States and creating the humanitarian crisis. It doesnt fix it. It makes it worse. And i hope the president is watching and listening and decides that he needs to be the one to make this statement because only the president has the bully pulpit necessary to deal with this. Fourth, our resolution calls on the president to ensure that states like texas and i see my colleague from arizona. I would include arizona, california and other border states have the resources we need to handle the crisis and to guarantee humane treatment of unaccompanied migrant children. Some of my colleagues from texas visited the facility in Lackland Air Force base on monday, including senator cruz and others, and they reported back conditions which, frankly, are very disturbing. And fifth, this resolution calls on the president to work closely with mexico and Central America officials to improve security at mexicos southern border. Mexico has a 500mile southern border with guatemala, which is insecure and porous, through which many of these or all of the unaccompanied minors from Central America come. So, madam president , i realize how controversial and polarizing the whole discussion about immigration can be, but i suggest we need to try to Work Together on a bipartisan basis to deal with it and that we should, by hopefully making this above partisan politics and doing our job, that we can help resolve this immediate crisis, but then we can help regain the micks confidence so they will allow us to take the reasonable steps we know we need to take moving forward to fix our broken Immigration Laws. Passing this resolution, i believe, would send a powerful message about our commitment and the president s commitment to the rule of law. Our commitment to resolving the Current Border crisis and our commitment to saving these Young Children from unimaginably treacherous journeys through mexico, which i previously described. So i would urge all of our colleagues to Work Together with us to send that message and encourage the president to use the bully pulpit to send the message i have outlined. Mr. Mccain would the senator yield for a question . Mr. Cornyn i will. Mr. Mccain first of all, i thank him for the resolution on behalf of myself and others. I appreciate your representation of the people of texas who are experiencing literally a crisis on the southern border of our state of your state as well as mine. I note the presence of the senator from illinois. No greater advocate for the dreamers, the children who were brought here not willfully, and i believe that in our Immigration Reform bill, we address that issue in a humane and compassionate fashion. But i i ask my colleague now isnt it terribly inhumane to see these children taken from these countries by some of the most unspeakable people on earth, these coyotes, and their trip along the way, these hundreds of miles is is so cruel and inhumane to many of these children that its chilling, that there are these coyotes are terrible people, they commit crimes to these people, on these Young Children. They do terrible things. They sometimes ride on the top of a train where safety is obviously their lives are literally in jeopardy. And so we talk about and again, i appreciate the work thats been done on behalf of the dreamers, but shouldnt we care a great deal about these children, even if they are not in the United States for what they are undergoing now . And isnt it a humanitarian issue of the highest order and wouldnt we be better served if we told these children and the people who are motivating them and making a lot of money bringing them here, wouldnt it be better for us to say look, anybody who shows up at our border is not going to be allowed to stay in this country, but if you go to our consulate, if you go to our embassy in the country in which you reside and make a case that your life is being threatened, you are being persecuted, whatever the conditions are for asylum in our country, then those cases can be judged and we can bring them, if it is a humanitarian case that warrants it, bring them into the United States of america, but say if you come to our border, you cross those how many miles is it from the guatemalan border . Mr. Cornyn 1,200 miles from Guatemala City to mcallen, texas. 1,200 miles. Mr. Mccain dont subject yourself to a 1,200mile trip which is hazardous to your life and can be terrible things can happen to you. Why dont we send the message that if you think you deserve asylum, then you go to the consulate, you go to the embassy, and we will have sufficient personnel there to take up your case, and if your case is compelling and meets our standards for asylum, then were going to give it to you. But whatever you do, dont risk your life and your wellbeing to travel 1,200 miles in the hands of a coyote. This is what you know, i would say to the senator from texas, sometimes when we say we have to have a secure border and the things that we need to do, we are viewed sometimes as inhumane. What is more my question is what is more inhumane than whats happening to these children now, some of them four, five, six years old. What is more inhumane than what is happening to them as we speak . And shouldnt the president of the United States do as the secretary of Homeland Security did yesterday and said you cannot enter our country even if you show up or you cannot stay in our country, you cannot stay in our country if you show up on the border, but you can apply for humanitarian asylum in the United States of america.  mr. Cornyn madam president , i i appreciate the question. I would say there is nobody in this chamber who has been more involved that long trying to fix our broken Immigration Laws than the senior senator from arizona, and certainly the senior senator from illinois has been very much involved. Both of them are members of the socalled gang of eight who were the primary authors of the senatepassed immigration bill, but i would point out that not even under that bill would these children be covered, because they wouldnt qualify for the socalled dream act provisions authored by the senior senator from illinois, and thats the point that the secretary of Homeland Security has been trying to make, is that this is not a green light to anybody and everybody who wants to come to the United States. For their protection, for the protection and safety and security of the American People and in the interests of an orderly immigration flow and the rule of law, we need people to play by the rules. As to the and its the perception that there are no rules and that if you make it here, you will be able to stay regardless of whether you qualify under a law thats created this flood of humanity. And the second thing i would say, the senator is exactly right. I think people underestimate the horror inflicted on migrants who are transported from Central America through mexico up into the United States at the hands of transnational criminal organizations. The quie yoat coyotes, as weves called them, they have to pay for protection or they cant travel through these corridors up through mexico to the United States. And these my grants i my migrang transported, they could be kidnapped or held for ransom, women will be raped and assaulted. Its horrific. Who in their right mind would subject their family to those sort of horrors only to end up here in the United States when our laws do not permit their entry into this country . So somehow the president i think is the only one who has the bully pulpit who can send that message in a way that none of us can. Or the homelan secretary of homd security to. Let them know were going to enforce the law. Mr. Mccain isnt the only way were going to stop this is to convince these people not to listen to the coyotes that are advertising on radio and television in these countries, but to convince these people that that trip will not lead to the result of being able to stay in the United States of america . Until that happens, then theyre going to believe that if they can get here, they can stay here. And, look, i all of our all of our hearts and sympathies go out to people that live in these countries in terrible conditions. We understand why they want to come to the United States of america. But theyre on a fools errand. Theyre on a fools errand. And meanwhile theyre putting their very lives at risk by taking that arduous journey to texas from guatemala or el salvador or honduras. I see also, by the way, my friend as i say, no greater advocate have i ever known for the dreamers than senator durbin. He was one of the earliest and most outspoken. And i hope he will join us in recognizing that the only way were going to stop this is to make sure people know that theres no pot of gold at the end of this terrible trip that theyre on . Mr. Cornyn i would say to the senior senator from arizona and i note the senator from illinois is here and ill be glad to turn the floor over to him momentarily, but i see two big problems. One is that this wave of children are coming and not allowed to legally enter or stay in the United States and thus are subject to being returned to their country of origin. Thats what Vice President biden said, former secretary of state hillary clinton. Thats what thats the law of the land. But think about what if the president doesnt step up and use his bully pulpit to send this message in a way none of us can, because people Pay Attention to him, and not as much to us i think thats a fair statement then this wave is going to continue and its going to get worse and worse and worse. But heres the other part of it, i would say to the senior senator from arizona and the senior senator from illinois, both of whom i know passionately care about fixing our broken Immigration Laws. Weve had our differences but i know youre committed sincerely to trying to fix our broken Immigration Laws. It is how will the American People let us do this if theyve lost confidence in the executive branchs willingness to enforce the current law . I think it makes it much, much, much harder. And, in fact, as i alluded a moment ago, you know, the majority leader and senior senator from new york have both said, well, lets pasS Immigration reform but lets just delay its implementation until after president obama leaves office. That ought to be an embarrassing proposal. Mr. Durbin will the senator yield . Mr. Cornyn i will yield in just a moment. Thats got to be embarrassing. Why that shows a lack of confidence in the president s commitment to enforce the rule of law. And i just think its a problem. So i think the president can help mitigate that problem and help restore the impression that youre not going to get a free pass if you make it to our southern border. I will gladly turn the floor over to mr. Durbin i would like to through the chair ask the senator from texas a question. He has said repeatedly that the president is not enforcing the existing law. Mr. Cornyn i will be glad to answer the question. Mr. Durbin this humanitarian crisis on our border we all acknowledge and i think we agree more than we disagree. But i do not to question your premise. Would the senator from texas tell me which existing law the president is not enforcing that has created this crisis . Mr. Cornyn well, i would say to my friend from illinois, ive tried to make clear that the current law bars the entry of these children and people across the border because they wouldnt even meet the terms of the president s executive order, if you believe the president s executive order has the effect of law. I dont. But what im saying is, its the impression its a couple of things. Its both the impression that the president is not committed to enforcing the law and the fact that now the when these adults are detained and children are placed with relatives in the country, there are virtually none of them show back up for their for their hearing. And so the effect is, because we dont have a comprehensive system to enforce our Immigration Laws even after people come to our country, its the perception and the reality of how that works that tells them if they make it here, then they wont ever have to leave . Mr. Durbin would the senator yield for a further question . Mr. Cornyn sure. Mr. Durbin does the senator know the origin of the law which requires that an unaccompanied child be turned over within 72 hours by the department of Homeland Security to the department of human health and Human Services, specifically the office of Refugee Resettlement . Does the senator from texas know who introduced that law who introduced that bill and who signed it into law . Mr. Cornyn i would say to the distinguished senator, i dont know who who introduced the bill but i do know who signed it into ball, president george w. Bush. Mr. Durbin i might say through the presiding officer, the bill was introduced by your former colleague from texas, richard armey, and was signed into law by president george w. Bush, which required what is currently taking place, that after within 72 hours, unaccompanied children needed to be taken out of the department of Homeland Security, a Law Enforcement agency, and placed through the departmendepartment of health an services into some protective situation. So the president is enforcing a law signed by president bush, authored by the congressman from texas, senator pardon me, congressman armey. So to say the president is not enforcing the law, i ask the senator from texas, by what on what basis are you saying that . Mr. Cornyn i would say to the senator from illinois, heres how it works. And i i dont think we disagree about the law or the origin of the law but how it works in application is that these children are now being placed with Family Members who they themselves may not be documented. They may have entered the country themselves in violation of the Immigration Law but because its perceived as a relatively safe place for them to temporarily reside, pending further court proceedings, thats why the placement is made with a Family Member in the United States. And absent a Family Member, i presume its going to be some legal guardian or foster family or the like while the Legal Proceedings go forward. But heres the practical probl problem. Its once they make it here to the United States, if they never return back to the court in response to their notice of appear to appear, then they are lost forever to the Immigration Enforcement system and they become a part of the Great American melting pot, never to be heard from or seen again unless they commit some other crime. So thats whats thats whats being referred to i believe in the press coverage in mexico or i should say Central America and elsewhere. And this is the report we hear from migrants themselves, theyre referred to a permiso which is the notice to appear, which they think once they get, theyre home free and they never have to show back up for their court hearing. So its as good as a permission slip to enter the country. Thats i think whats actually happening. Mr. Durbin if the senator would further yield for a question. If i understand what he said, we dont argue with the fact that the law governing this situation was a law that was authored by a congressman from texas, republican congressman, signed into law by a republican president , george w. Bush, and currently is being enforced by this president. And what the senator from texas has suggested is that the law in and of itself has at least a loophole or an opening that if the person doesnt appear, the young child or the parent with the child, then they could be lost in our system. I would ask the senator from texas, it seems to me that you are suggesting we need to change the law or at least address the law. So two questions to you. If you will concede the fact that president obama is enforcing the law as written, id like to ask you, secondly, what you would do with these children once they show up in the United States . Lets assume you have a 12yearold child, as i heard a case last night, who was on top of a Freight Train for four da days, finally made it into the United States, possibly at the hands of a coyote, a smuggler im making no excuses for the them pushed across the river, rio grande, in a raft, and told to report to the first pers pern uniform. What would you have us do with that child at that point . Mr. Cornyn madam president , i would respond to my friend from illinois and say i would have them enforce the law, which is, as you described, that Border Patrol once theyve processed the child or the migrant, then they turn them over to health and Human Services where they can be placed in a humanitarian and hopefully clean conditions so they can be their interests can be looked after while their legal case proceeds. But the problem is, is not just the fact that there are no consequences once these children or others are released on a notice to appear, which is never enforced, it is also the perception that for people like, for example, congressman Luis Gutierrez this morning, who is so frustrated by our inability to pasS Immigration reform, he said, the president needs to basically withhold any deportations or he needs to radically essentially refuse to enforce the law even further. You know, the american america is the most generous country in the world when it comes to our Legal Immigration system. We naturalize about 800,000 people a year. Its actually been up to as many as a million people. We are very generous. But its not too much to insist that people do it through legal means, for their protection and ours. And i would say this these statements the president s been making and certainly the unilateral actions he continues to take give the perception he doesnt care what congress says, hes going to go it alone. As a matter of fact, this morning, the Supreme Court rebuked the president on an illegal recess appointment. Unconstitutional recess appointment. So i just think that its not just the law, as written on the book, its how the law is actually implemented and it is also the further perception that the president s going to continue to basically refuse to repatriate people who enter the country illegally. Madam president , i would yield the floor. Mr. Durbin madam president . The presiding officer the assistant majority leader. Mr. Durbin madam president , i went to the white house last night. The president invited democratic members of the senate and we met with cabinet members and Staff Members and this topic came up. And i met with one of the president s close advisors on this issue. And she was describing to me what she had seen in mcallen, texas. And there were tears in her eyes. Heartbreaking stories of babies, children, infants who are coming to this country and many of them are in the hands of smugglers and coyotes who have gotten money from their parents or family to transport them to the border with the United States. And she told me the story of a 12yearold boy that i mentioned earlier in guatemala who was put on a Freight Train, the top of a Freight Train one of these cars and said, hang on. For four days. Four days this 12yearold boy, scared to death, was on top of this Freight Train as it barreled through Central America on its way to the United States. He had with him the name of a relative in the United States. Thats it. And he was told as soon as he got across the border, look for somebody in a uniform. Dont show any resistance. And present yourself, which he did. And now he sits in a facility in texas. This is a horrible humanitarian situation. The numbers that are involved here i just want to give for the record the numbers that have been reported here. Theyre worth noting. Some people may think were talking about hundreds of children. This year this year alone as of june 15th, unaccompanied children apprehended by the Border Patrol from honduras, 15,000. Guatemala, 12,000. El salvador, 11,000. Mexico, 12,000. Almost 80 of these kids come from three countries, honduras, el salvador and guatemala. Why are they coming here . Theyre coming here for a number of reasons. Number one, there is this network, criminal network that gets money to transport childr children. And they promise to the families, well get them to the border. God only knows whats going to happen to those kids on their way. Some of them will die. Some of the girls will be raped. Their lives may never be the same. It is a desperate, awful, tragic situation. And theres no getting around the fact that its occurring. Why are the families doing this . Why would you turn loose a fourth or fifth grader in your household to make that awful, deadly journey . Well, part of the reason is those three countries, honduras, el salvador and guatemala, are virtually lawless. They are three of the top five countries in the world when it comes to a murder rate. Theres a fear that the gangs in these countries will kill their kids anyway. A young girl in one of these countries said, i ran. I didnt know what else to do because i was told that one of the members of the gang wanted to take me on as a girlfriend. And i know what happens to girls who become gill friends. They are raped and they are killed and left in a plastic bag by the side of the road. That is the life sadly in some of these countries, and the United States now is at the end of this journey trying to decide what is the humane thing to do when an infant, a toddler, a 10yearold, a 12yearold shows up. Theres no easy answer. The one point i want to make and clarify here and i hope i did it in the course of my colloquy with my friend and colleague from texas this is not a question about whether president obama has dreamed up a new law or is not enforcing an existing law. The president is enforcing an existing law in america and here is what it says. When an unaccompanied child shows up at our bored border and is taken into custody, within 72 hours we need to put this child in a different place outside the Law Enforcement agency. Technically take them out of the Police Station part of the world and put them in some part of the world thats best for a child, and thats what theyre required to do under a law introduced by a republican texas congressman, dick armey, signed into law by a republican president , george w. Bush. What president barack obama is doing is enforcing a law which president bush signed and was supported by republicans. So, please, for a second can we stop the partisanship on this. Lets view this not as a political crisis but a humanitarian crisis. And lets acknowledge the obvious. The president has tried in his capacity to deal with the immigration issue. Hes done more than he wanted to do as president. He said last night to a gathering, he said do you think, i believe that executive orders are the best way to govern america . No. Its better to do it by law. But let me tell you why hes forced into executive orders. 365 days ago on the floor of this United States senate, we passed a comprehensive Immigration Reform bill. One of my prouder moments as a senator. There were eight of us who wrote the bill, and it took us months. Four republicans john mccain who was just on the floor, my friend. Marco rubio of florida. Jeff flake of arizona. And im thinking for a second. I blanked on it. Ill think of the other one in just a second. Lindsey graham, south carolina, came to me. The four republicans on our side of the table, Chuck Schumer of new york, myself, a senator from new jersey, we went at it for months and we wrote the bill. We covered virtually every aspect of our broken immigration system start to finish. Not easy, but we covered it all. The bill passed here, got 68 votes. We had 14 republicans joining the democrats passing the bill. It was supported by the chamber of commerce. It was supported by the labor unions, the faith community, grover norquist, one of the most conservative republicans in our country, supported it publicly and said it was a good idea, and we passed it, and we sent it to the house of representatives one year ago. What has happened to comprehensive Immigration Reform since we sent it one year ago in the house of representatives . Nothing. Nothing. They refused to call the bill for consideration. And so when members come to the floor and talk about how broken our immigration system is, i agree. And many of us tried to fix it, and we did it the way we should do it. In a bipartisan fashion, giveandtake, compromise. We are sending under this new bill more enforcement to the border between texas and mexico than weve ever seen before. I said somewhat jokingly people at the border can reach out and touch hands,; there will be so many of them figuratively at our border. And that was the price that the republicans insisted on. Border enforcement. All right. What we insisted on was take the 11 million undocumented in america today, and if they have been here for at least two years, give them a chance. Let them come forward, register with the United States, who they are, where they live, where they work, whos in their household. Let them pay their taxes. Let them pay a fine. And let them learn english. If they do those things, well do a criminal background check to make sure theyre no threat to anyone in this country, and well watch them. Well watch them for 13 years. 13 years. Then they have a chance at legalization. Thats what our bill says. They go to the back of line and they wait 13 years while they pay their fines. Its tough. Some of them wont make it to the end of the line, but its there. It gives them a chance. So when members come to the floor and criticize our current immigration system, i say to them, there was a repair of that system, there was a fix to that system. It passed the senate one year ago, and Speaker Boehner refuses to call it on the floor of the house. I dont know why. Well, i do know why. Because it would pass. There would be enough republicans joining democrats to pass it, and we would finally have done something on the issue of immigration. Now we have before us the suggestion by the senior senator from texas, he has a resolution and we should take it up. In the first part of the resolution, it says the president would have to make it clear that the daca executive order does not apply to the new people coming across the border. Well, thats a fact. Those who are coming across the border today cant qualify to become legal in the United States, not under any existing executive order or under the proposed comprehensive Immigration Reform that we passed in the senate. They cant become citizens. The president is saying it personally. Im sure the president would say it personally because he sent the Vice President out to Central America to visit the countries and tell the leaders there this is a mistake. If your people believe they can stay in this country legally, they cannot. Secondly, he said we have to discourage this migration. Im for that. Who isnt for that . We need to discourage the exploitation of these children and their families and do it in every manner possible, so theres nothing in that suggestion that i think isnt already being done. And the third thing is to fully enforce existing laws. The point i tried to make to the senator from texas is the president is fully enforcing existing laws. If you want to change the laws lets have that debate but to argue the president is not enforcing existing laws is not correct. He is. Those laws may need to be changed or addressed but he is dealing with them. I want to just say a word if i can about an issue which has come up on the floor and one that is near and dear to my heart. It was 13 years ago, madam president , when i got a call in my chicago office. There was a korean American Mother who had an 18yearold daughter who was a musical prodigy. She played classical piano in high school, and she had been offered a scholarship to the manhattan conservatory of music. Her family was a poor immigrant family, and this was the chance of a lifetime. And when the mother and daughter sat down to fill out the application to go to the manhattan conservatory of music, there was a question which said, what is your citizenship . And she turned to her mother and said what do i put there, and her mother said i dont know. We brought you here under a visitors visa when you were two years old and we never filed any papers. The daughter said what am i going to do and the mother said well call durbin. We called our office and we looked at the law and the law was clear. The law was clear. This 18yearold girl under our law had to leave the United States for ten years and then apply to come back in. Where was she going to go . Her family was here. And so the mother said to me, what can we do . And i told her, under the law, almost nothing. But thats when i introduced the dream act. And the dream act said if you were brought here as a child, an infant, under the age of 16 and you completed high school and you had no criminal record of any substance at all, if you served in our military or went two years to college, you had a chance to become an american citizen. That was the dream act. I introduced it 13 years ago. 13 years ago. It has passed the house but didnt pass the senate that year. It has passed the senate as part of comprehensive Immigration Reform but it hasnt passed the house. Several years ago i wrote to the president. I said to the president with 22 other senators, would you consider issuing an executive order saying you will not deport these dream children, these dreamers because theyre eligible under bills that have passed both the house and senate. Give them a suspension of deportation and allow them to stay in the United States without fear of being deported. He signed the executive order. So for 600,000, so far almost 600,000 have stepped forward and theyve agreed that they will submit the information to our government and in turn they will be spared deportation. Theyre getting on with their lives. Theyre going to school. Theyre getting jobs. Amazing things are happening. I come to the floor and tell them all the time but we still dont have the final law. We have the president s executive order which gives them a break now, but we still dont have the final law to resolve it. I want to tell you a story about one of those dreamers today. This is Maria Gonzalez deale and her parents marvin and marina gonzalez. They brought maria from costa rica to the United States in 1991 when maria was five years old. They came to the United States legally on temporary visas and settled in Jefferson City, missouri. A lawyer said to them, put down roots, get a job, and youve got a chance to become citizens. The Gonzalez Family bought a house, paid their taxes and were active members of their church. Marvin was a mail courier for the missouri governor and maria was at the top of her high school class. They thought they had done everything right. Then marias family was placed in deportation proceedings. The community of Jefferson City was angry that a good family like this that was a part of their community was facing deportation. They rallied around them. I first met maria in 2005. She was one of the first dreamers to tell her story publicly. Back then it was a pretty courageous thing to do. Still is. At my request, the department of Homeland Security granted maria a stay of deportation. But on july 5, 2005, nine years ago, marias parents were deported back to costa rica. In 2008, marie graduated from Westminster College in missouri with a degree in Political Science and business but her parents couldnt be there to see her. They had been deported back to costa rica. In 2009 marie married her college sweetheart. They planned a second ceremony in costa rica. On thanksgiving 2010 marie and her husband flew to costa rica. As you can see from this picture, they were elated to see one another for the first time in five years. Just a few hours later marvin, her father, who had prostate cancer, collapsed and was rushed to the hospital, passed away later that same day that this photograph was taken. Luckily they got to see him before he passed away. The family held a funeral the next day and carried on with the planned wedding, costa rica wedding the following day with an empty charity head table for her deceased father. Today maria is the proud mother of an 11monthold baby girl. In march 2014, maria became a citizen of the United States. Heres what she wrote. I was very blessed and thankful to get the opportunity to stay in the United States on a temporary visa and be able to finish my education, get a job, find my soul mate and eventually become a citizen. Though at the cost of not spending that time with my family and feeling alone for so long. My family was torn apart when i was 18 and well never able be able to be reunited. Migration struggle continues until the day i can once again have my mom at my side. I hope other families dont have to endure this pain. There are 11 million stories in america, many of them just like this. Hardworking men and women, lawabiding families, viable parts of our churches and our communities who have the courage to leave everything behind and come to this great nation. Those of us who are immigrants to this country, which includes the presiding officer and myself at least my mother thank our lucky stars that we were given this chance. My mother was an immigrant to this country. Her son is a United States senator from illinois. She came, was brought here at the age of two. Her naturalizeation certificate is in my office upstairs. Im very proud of it. Its a reminder to me and a reminder to anyone who visits me that this is a nation of immigrants. We are a nation that thrives with the diversity of our immigration and the energy they bring. The courage which they bring, leaving everything behind to come to this country. Thats your family. That was my family. Thats our story. But thats americas story. Thats who we are. And if we reach the point where we cant even discuss future immigration in the u. S. House of representatives, have we reached a point where we cant even bring the matter to the floor for a vote . Are we going to ignore what that means to this family and millions just like them, what it means to the thousands of kids presenting themselves at the border. We are better than that. America is better than that. And when we grac embrace our diversity, welling strorpg for it. Not just in the creation of new businesses and jobs. These immigrants are some of the hardestworking people in america. They take the toughest jobs that a lot of americans wouldnt touch. But they know thats what an immigrant does. Whats their dream . That their babies, their sons and daughters, will have a better life. And thank goodness that story has been repeated over and over and over again. That defines who we are in america. And now a, a year later, the house of representatives, is about to throw up its hand and walk away from even addressing immigration issues. What a heartbreaking situation. What an be a did i dation indication of responsibility what an abdication of responsibility. I honestcally believe that the speaker had the political courage to call the comprehensive immigration bill the bipartisan bill that passed the senate, we would find enough Republican House members who would stand upped and vote with the democrats and pass it. Sure, there will be critics of the speaker. Shouldnt have done it. But thats what leadership calls for, for the speaker to have that courage and to get it done. I hope he will. A year is a longer time to wait. And for these families, years and years, some of them with broken dreams that will never be fulfilled, families that have been split up and try to survievment but thats our responsibility, not just for dreams but for our country. Madam president , i yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call mr. Mcconnell madam president . The presiding officer the republican leader. Mr. Mcconnell are we in a quorum call . The presiding officer yes. Mr. Mcconnell i ask consent that further proceedings under the quorum call be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell madam president , it is with Great Sadness that i announce the passing of one of the senates most towering figures, senator howard baker. The senate sends its sincere condolences to the family of senator baker. In particular, we want to pass a along our deep sympathies to his wife, Nancy Landon Kassebaum baker. Many of us served along nancy here in the senate. We know this must be a difficult moment for her. Senator baker was a true path breaker. He served as tennessees first popularly elected republican senator since reconstruction. He served as americas first republican majority leader since the time of eisenhower, and he served this nation as distinction as a member of the u. S. Navy, as chief of staff to president reagan, and as our countrys ambassador to japan. Senator baker truly earned his nickname, the great conciliator. I know he will be remembered with fondness by members of both political parties. So again, let me express the senates insist tsenates sympar family. He will be missed by the senate and by his country. Mr. Reid madam president . The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Reid as the distinguished republican leader has said, this body, the United States senate, has lost a member of its family. Tennessean howard baker we know of his long distinguished career served three terms in the senate, served as minority leader, ended his career as majority leader. He was an earnest man, worked with any members in passing legislation for the good of america. As the republican leader has mentioned, he worked as under the direction of president george w. Bush as ambassador to japan. He was president reagans chief of staff. He was someone that could do everything. He was wellliked by democrats, republicans. He was a fine man. I didnt know him as well as my colleague, the republican leader, or, of course, the two sitting tennessee senators tod today. He enjoyed an i wil illustriousr in Public Service and it was accomplished by his hard work. He loved foreign aface and did a great job. He was moa motivated by his dese to do 0 good in the world. Our thoughts go to his family and his wife, whom we had the good fortune to serve w i do say this, madam president the two fine men who now serve the United States senate from tennessee, im confident they learned a lot from howard baker, because the senior senator from tennessee is also a person who wants to try to work things out. The junior senator from tennessee and i have had many conversations. I believe he also wants to be someone who works things out. So my sympathy goes to senator baker, his family, his friends, especially the two senators from tennessee, who im sure are heartbroken you dont to the loss of their great friend. Due to the loss of their great friend. I suggest the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call ms. Murkowski madam president , i ask that proceedings urpd under the quorum call be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Ms. Murkowski i want to speak very briefly this afternoon to acknowledge a hero. I come to the floor just after the announcement has been made about a leader here in the senate, senator baker. While i did not have the privilege of serving at the same time, my father did. They were close friends, not only with senator baker, but with senator kassebaum. And my heart and thigh thoughts go out to and my thoughts go out to the family. The contributions from senator baker on so many Different Levels are so greatly appreciated. I would like to spend just about five minutes here this morning speaking of another hero, and this is a man who has demonstrated above and beyond his commitment, his service to the United States, and id like to speak today about Master Sergeant roger d. Sparks. It is my duty as a pararescueman to save lives and to aid the injured. I will be prepared at all times to perform my assigned duties quickly and efficiently, placing these duties before personal desires and comforts. The things i do that others may live. The things that i do that others may live, madam president this is the solemn oath by which all pararescue airmen pledge their oath and dedicate their service to our country. It is th the sacred greed of an honorable profession. Alaskans are proud of the combat searchandrescue airmen assigned to the 176th wing in the Alaska Air National guard. These airmen embody the core values of the air force iintegrity first, excellence in always they do and are undoubtedly the best our quonk has to offer many the National Guard bureau recently confirmed that the rescue squadrons of the 176th wing comprise the busiest searchandrescue unit in the entire air force. This brings great pride us to as alaskans. These brave men and women risk their lives every day so that others may live. I am honored to thank them for theirselves and recognize the descreerd bravery of one of their own. I am pleefsed to today honor one of these heroic airmen, specifically a parajumper or a p. J. , one Master Sergeant roger d. Sparks from the 212th rescue squadron out of joint base he will mensdorf. The air force will award sergeant sparks with the silver star medal for gallantry in combat during a daring lifesaving rescue in the face of extreme danger in afghanistan on november 14, 2010. On that day, sergeant sparks picture pictured here the tall gentleman in the background here he is with his pararescue team. He responded to crisis from help from an army platoon pinned down on all side by a fierce and coordinated tail bang assault. What started as a relatively rye teen rescue mission and routine by their standards is still extremely heroic this mission quickly broke down into a dire situation that claimed the lives of five u. S. Soldiers but could have been an absolutely catastrophic loss of life had it not been for the bravely and the selfless actions of sergeant sparks and his team. At the time of this reserve sciewrks the p. J. Team had been providing dedicated medical evacuation support for the 101st Airborne Unit during operation bulldog bite. This was a coalition offensive which was aimed at driving the enemy out of the valley in the kunar province of afghanistan near the eastern border with super pac stan. Throughout the fiveday orntion the team rescued 49 casualties and executed 30 hoist operations, most of which were done while they were exposed to enemy fire. The most significant of all these missions, though, took place on november 14. To paraphrase the account from sergeant sparks Team Commander capital bailey, what began as a relatively routine rescue operation for two wounded and one deceased soldier quickly turned into anything but routine. As the rescue Team Approached the battle zone and took on fire, they quickly realized that the situation was rapidly deteriorating for the u. S. Soldiers on the ground. According to capital bailey, a different operator came on the radio indicating that the first operator was hit. You could hear the fear in the guys voice. While we were listening it went from two to six wounded. So with complete disregard for their own safety, capital bailey and sergeant sparks were lowered into the battle amidst a hail of enemy fire. It was later determined that the hoistline used to lower them into combat was actually even struck by several rounds. As soon as their boots hit the ground, a rocketpropelled grenade exploded less than 20 feet away, knocking down airmen to the ground. Quickly gathering themselves, sergeant sparks and captain bailey took charge of the beleaguered platoon trapped in a a. Q. I. Chaotic fight. Sergeant sparks and captain bailey were on their own to hadged the situation the best they could with extremely limited first aid equipment and no ground artillery support. Over the next five hours as buld against the rocks. Sergeant box abandoned to treat the wounded. Sergeant sparks selflessly exposed himself in order to save american lives competently handling the treatment of nine patients during the worst possible mass casualty situation. Taken from the narrative, when sergeant sparks exhausted his medical supplies, he improvised using belts, tshirts or boot strings in desperate attempt to keep his patients alive. After assembling all the casualities in a central location, sergeant sparks gathered body armor and positioned it to protect the soldiers from enemy fire. Sergeant sparks performed vital medical procedures in a deliberate process to ensure that each of the soldiers received continued care and attention until airlift arrived. He feverishly triaged chest wounds, punctured lungs, eviscerated stomachs and arterial bleeders with extremely limited medical supplies and only the light of the moon piercing the darkness of the remote mountaintop. Upon return of evacuation aircraft sergeant sparks directed the hoisting of the most critically injured and briefed the crews, choose to go remain behind until the last man departed. Sergeant sparks quick and composed action ensured nine soldiers received medical care as quickly as possible amidst constant enemy fire and despite extremely limited resources. Sergeant sparks leadership and courageous action saved lives and allowed the remainder of the infantry platoon to continue with the assigned mission. His actions resulted in saving four american lives and one host nation civilian as well as returning four soldiers killed in action to their families. Tragically, the fierce battle ultimately claimed the lives of five soldiers that day. All told, only eight soldiers of the platoon involved in the sixhour battle were left with no visible wounds. However, if it werent for the courage and selfless action of sergeant sparks, captain bailey and the entire rescue team, the loss of life would have been much higher. Id like to take this opportunity to honor sergeant sparks brave teammates who also disregarded their own personal safety throughout their operation and operation bulldog bite so others may live. Staff Sergeant Jimmy settle, ted serinsky, Master Sergeant brandon stumpsky, captain Marcus Morris and captain koali daily. There were many heroes on these day including these pararescue men but im particularly honored to congratulate Master Sergeant sparks on the award of the silver star and thank him and their family tor their dedicated and Selfless Service to our nation. As with all the members of the 176th wing im absolutely in awe of his achievements, eternally grateful for his service and sincerely proud to have him serving in the great state of alaska. Madam president , i ask unanimous consent that the complete text of Master Sergeant sparks silver star medal citation be printed in the record. The presiding officer without objection. Ms. Murkowski with that, madam president , i yield the floor. The presiding officer the senator from maryland. Ms. Mikulski mpts, i rise to speak madam president , i rise to speak about the missing girls from nigeria who on the 73rd day are still held in captivity. But before i do, as United States senator, i would like to express my sorrow to hear about the passing of one of the great senators, senator howard baker of tennessee. Many senators will come to the floor to extol what a great senator he was, what a great leader he was, and i also want to take a moment to express my sympathy to his widow, another senator, senator nancy kassebaum. Madam president , when i came to this senate, there was only one other woman, and that was senator nancy kassebaum. Then serving, representing the great state of kansas. And she was just a great friend to me. We served on the help committee. We worked together over many years, and then senator kassebaum retired. She thought she was going back to kansas, but she found herself in the arms of howard baker. And we watched the love story unfold that was just so endearing to many of us. Senator ted kennedy and i were invited to the wedding of howard baker and nancy kassebaum. After the vows, there was a beautiful reception and they played the music. Howard and nancy twirled and whirled around the floor. Then they turned to the crowd and ted kennedy and i rushed out. I grabbed howard. He grabbed nancy, and we did the bipartisan boogie through the night. Those are the days that one remembers, and thats kind of the spirit that the senate had. And thats kind of spirit that senator howard baker did, that you could argue, you could debate, and so on. But deep down, the senate should be the saucer that cools irrational passions of the time. He was a great leader and he created this atmosphere of being able to come together and solve problems. So whether it was on the senate floor or whether it was on the dance floor, he really spoke about the need for bipartisanship. And senator nancy kassebaumbaker is exactly the same way. So remembering with such fondness, we want to express our condolences about him and certainly to her, as just one woman to another. So, madam president , i also come to the floor today to talk about another sadness, the sadness about the fact that the nigerian schoolgirls who were abducted by boko haram continue to be held in captivity. And i come to the floor to say just because its not in the headline doesnt mean that these girls are not these girls are still in danger for what has happened to them. And we need to continue to speak up and speak out. That is not to minimize iraq. That is not to minimize iran. That is not to minimize all of the other problems facing the world. But we all had webs and hashtags and so on saying bring our girls back home. And im here today saying to boko haram, we have not forgotten. Were proud of our president , that he sent 80 troops to chad to assist in the effort to locate these kidnapped girls. We understand that there continues to be the search effort. Well, we dont want it to be a recovery effort. We need it to be a rescue effort. These girls were kidnapped. Its despicable. Its unacceptable. They are threatening to sell these girls into trafficking. And now after holding them for 73 days, i have no idea what they have been what they have had to endure. And it goes on. Theyre continuing to kidnap children. Theyre kidnapping girls, some as young as three and four. That was the other day. They were also kidnapping little boys. What what what kind of organization is this . Now, in response to the violence there, i know we, the women of the senate, signed a letter to president obama asking for International Sanctions again boko haram and that they be added to the u. N. Sanctions list. The u. N. Actually acted. So now theyre on the terrorist list, and we need to take all the appropriate actions that support the sanctions that go with it. So, im hopeful that we can find these girls, but we cannot let our advocacy for them, for these close to 100 girls, and now the new children that have been kidnapped, boys as well as girls, to do that. We need to be able to take all necessary international steps that are legal to be able to rescue them and bring them home. Now, this terrible, terrible situation has also generated the conversation about the education of children around the world, particularly girls. For some reason, there are those around the world who do not want to see girls get a basic education. Mallah, who wrote a book about it, took a bullet wound in her brain because she wanted to go to school, because she wanted to learn to read, as she said, one child, one book at a time, we can change the world. We have put money in the federal checkbook and foreign ops to help with the education of the children around the world. Right now there are 62 Million Girls 62 Million Girls throughout the world who are not in school. And theyre not in school for two reasons. Theyre not in school because of the lack of capacity like books and teachers. And theyre not in school because of the bigotry against them. We need to do something. So, madam president , i know that were looming towards a vote. I say i say to boko haram, let these girls go. Lets bring them back home. I say for those who are searching for them, dont lose heart. Youve got to deal with that. But we also have to come to grips with the fact that we cannot let millions of girls around the world not have access to education. Education is as important as water. You need water to live and you need education to make a life for yourself. So we look forward to working with our colleagues across the aisle. We hope to move the foreign ops bill that has money in the federal checkbook to do this. I know that were moving to a vote. And, madam president , i ask unanimous consent that my full statement be in the record. And when we return from the break, i will have more to say and i hope we will be thank god we found them and we brought them back to their mothers and fathers. Madam president , i yield the floor. The presiding officer under the previous order the senate will proceed to the consideration of the following nominations which the clerk will report. The clerk nominations department of state, stuart e. Jones of virginia to be ambassador of the United States of america to the republic of iraq. Robert Stephen Beecroft to be ambassador of the United States of america to be the arab republic of egypt. Department of treasury. Karen dynan of maryland to be an assistant secretary. Department of interior, esther puakela kiaana of hawaii to be assistant secretary. Vincent g. Logan of new york to be special trustee, office of special trustee for american indians. Executive office of the president , Jo Emily Handelsman of connecticut to be an associate director of the office of science and technology policy. The presiding officer there will now be two minutes of debate equally divided prior to a vote on the jones nomination. Without objection all time is yielded back. The question is on the jones nomination. Is there a sufficient second . There appears to be. The clerk will call the roll. Vote vote