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Floor Speech

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Mr. TUBERVILLE. Madam President, it is great to hear my Democratic colleague come out against what is happening at the border. It is a disaster, and it is a national security threat.

Three weeks ago, two illegal immigrants attempted to break into the Marine base at Quantico in Virginia. Both individuals are Jordanian nationals who were apprehended by Customs and Border Protection at the southern border and released into the United States. One of them was allegedly on the Terrorist Watchlist.

Now, how did we get here? How did we get to the point where two people who entered the country illegally and were not screened or vetted tried to drive a truck onto a military base?

Let me say that again: These people are not being screened or vetted. We have no idea who these people are.

But here is what we do know about the people who have invaded our country: 25,000 Chinese nationals have entered our country since October 1, 2023; 184,000 Haitians have entered under Joe Biden's mass parole program; along with 101,000 Venezuelans, 91,000 Cubans, and 75,000 Nicaraguans. And this doesn't count the 76,000 Afghans who came here after Joe Biden's disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan.

As I have repeatedly said, I have no problem with legal immigration, nor do my Republican colleagues. America is the land of freedom and opportunity. If people want to come here legally, we will welcome them; but we cannot--we cannot--have terrorists crossing our borders unverified. Ask the FBI.

Beyond the safety concerns, we simply cannot afford to support the 11 million illegal immigrants who have illegally crossed our borders in the past 3\1/2\ years. I don't know if Joe Biden missed the memo, but, folks, we are dead broke--dead broke--yet we are shelling out hundreds of billions of dollars to support these 11 million illegal immigrants, and this does not count the millions of what we call ``got-aways.'' Obviously, if they can come across and not be apprehended, why in the world would they go somewhere and run from the Border Patrol? It is because they are criminals.

A recent report from the House Committee on Homeland Security estimated the southern border surge is costing the American taxpayers about $450 billion a year. You got that right. It is costing the American taxpayers $450 billion a year. After 10 years, we are looking at a $5 trillion bill. In terms of actual benefits, it is estimated that illegals receive $42 billion in welfare annually, $68 billion in education, and $7 billion in healthcare. We are spending hundreds of billions of dollars to support all of these people. The American taxpayers simply cannot afford it.

So why are Joe Biden and the globalist Democrats allowing this to happen? Why is this going on?

It is simply because Democrats care more about keeping power than they do about safety and protecting the American taxpayer and the American citizen. A New York Congressman confirmed this. She said that she welcomes illegal immigration because it helps with redistricting.

The President and his progressive left Democratic Party know that the more people they can get into this country, the longer they will stay in power--by increasing the population in the blue districts. It is a simple fact.

But enough is enough. Too many American lives have been lost due to the blatant disregard of U.S. law by the Biden administration. It is time elected officials fulfilled their obligation and the oath of office, starting with protecting the country from all enemies, foreign and domestic. This bill, the Border Act of 2024 that Schumer is forcing us to vote on, is basically an absolute joke.

By the way, President Trump has never told me--and I talk to him weekly. He has never said one word about the border. I don't know where my colleague from Georgia got this information, but it is false. If he had told anybody, he would have told me.

This bill, the Border Act of 2024, doesn't even have the word ``security'' in the title. That is because this bill will only make the crisis at the southern border worse. It is a border invasion bill; it is not a border bill. It is a border giveaway paid for by the American taxpayers in the trillions of dollars.

It also weakens the power of the President by suggesting the President close the border only when Customs and Border Protection has apprehended 4,000 illegal immigrants a day. Yes, you heard that--a day. So we are going to pass a bill that is going to allow 4,000 people to come here a day. That is insane. The last time I checked, the Commander in Chief already has full authority to secure the border. There is nothing new about that. That is supposed to be a basic requirement of his job: to protect the American citizens; to protect our borders; to protect our country.

The bill also includes zero funding for the border wall--zero, and it codifies dangerous catch-and-release policies.

So how did we get here? How is a border bill crafted that does nothing to secure the border?

Republican leadership put together this bill. They pushed things without telling the rest of the caucus and said: At the end of the day, this is the bill that we have come up with--and we rejected it. Most of us didn't even know what was in the bill even at almost the time of the vote. The bill is just another public relations stunt from globalist Democrats pretending to care about the border during an election year.

We need to get serious about the national security disaster created by open borders--serious. If we don't believe that, we need to ask our allies over in Europe who have pretty much had their countries destroyed by immigration.

The American people don't want another messaging exercise. They want to feel safe in their neighborhoods. They pay our bills. They deserve it. We are here for them.

Over the last 3 years, Americans have watched in disbelief as Joe Biden has intentionally erased our borders and invited millions of illegal immigrants to invade our country. My bill, the Border Safety and Security Act, would shut down our borders until the Department of Homeland Security regains operational control because, as we speak, the border is being overrun. That means the border would be completely closed until DHS is able to track exactly who is coming into the country by either detaining them or setting up a program similar to ``Remain in Mexico.'' It is that simple.

If Democrats are serious about securing the border, they will support the Border Safety and Security Act.

696 and that the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration; further, that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

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Mr. TUBERVILLE. Well, there you have it. The American people have their answer. Democrats don't care about securing the border. They never have, and they never will. They pretend to. They continue to choose open borders--more crime, more fentanyl overdoses, more human trafficking, and more American deaths.

Democrats will say Republicans tanked the bill that would have secured the border. You just heard that. This is a blatant lie. This bill, crafted by Democrats, would have done absolutely nothing to strengthen the border--not one thing. In fact, it would have made things worse. It would codify the problems that we have had the last 3\1/2\ years.

My Republican colleagues have offered real solutions for the last month to fix the problem. We have a huge problem. Somebody needs to recognize that. But my Democratic colleagues have voted against and objected to every single thing that we have brought up.

Don't buy into this lie.

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