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[Page S17]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
GOVERNMENT FUNDING AND NATIONAL SECURITY
Mr. THUNE. Madam President, as we begin a new Congress, it is always
an exciting time. There are a lot of families and friends here. Our
Members and colleagues were sworn in earlier today. It represents a new
beginning--obviously, a time when there is hope and optimism that we
can come together and do some good things for the people we represent
in our respective States and for our country. That is the way we
approach this new session of Congress.
There is a lot I think we can do. We can find some common ground and
work together. Obviously, we have to deal with the issues of last
year's business before we can start this business of this new year.
Last year's business is incomplete. We are almost 2 weeks into a
partial government shutdown because Democrats don't want to fund
increased security for the border. Border security is a national
security requirement. Every Member of Congress, Democrat or Republican,
should take seriously our responsibility to protect our Nation by
ensuring that our borders are secure. At one time Democrats understood
that.
In 2006, the Democratic leader and the ranking member of the Senate
Judiciary Committee voted for legislation to authorize a border fence.
They were joined in that vote by then-Senators Biden, Clinton, and
Obama. In 2013, every Senate Democrat supported legislation requiring
the completion of a 700-mile fence along our southern border. This
legislation would have provided $46 billion for border security and $8
billion specifically for the wall.
Nearly every Senate Democrat supported $25 billion in border security
funding just last February--just recently, less than 1 year ago. Yet
today, Democrats would rather keep part of the government shut down
than provide the money needed to secure our borders. The question is,
What has changed?
Our national security situation certainly hasn't changed. Our borders
are not sufficiently secure, and as we have seen, they are a target for
illegal entry. Over the past year, illegal border crossing
apprehensions have shot up by more than 30 percent. The holes in our
border security leave us susceptible to illegal entry by gang members,
human traffickers, drug dealers, terrorists, and weapons traffickers.
The Democrats are refusing to budge on sorely needed border security
funding. Why? I think that is a fair question.
It is, I think, because Democrats are reluctant to oppose the far-
left wing of their party, which increasingly seems to be advancing this
preposterous notion that we really don't need to secure our borders at
all. Every nation has to secure its borders. A country without borders
really isn't a country. Preventing dangerous individuals and goods from
entering is an essential part of every country's security, and as my
Democratic colleagues have proved in the past, they know this, which is
why they voted that way in previous sessions of Congress, as recently
as last year.
I hope they will think better of this government shutdown and decide
that their national security obligations are more important than
catering to the far-left wing of their party. It is time to fund our
border security and to end this shutdown. It simply requires sides to
come together to find that common ground and to do what is in our
country's best interests and the best interests of the American people;
that is, to make sure that our country has a secure border and that we
discourage people from coming here illegally and encourage them to come
through legal means.
I had the opportunity a couple of weeks ago in my State of South
Dakota to welcome into our State and country 99 new citizens from 33
countries around the world. They came here the legal way. They went
through the process and followed our rules, followed our laws. That is
what we want to encourage more of.
What we don't need more of are people coming into this country
illegally and presenting the types of threats I mentioned earlier--
anytime we have that many people, in a mass way, migrating across our
border. I hope and sincerely believe that as a Congress, as a Senate
working with this President--who has made this a big priority for his
administration--it is an important priority for our country and a
requirement and obligation that I think we all have as U.S. Senators,
first and foremost, to protect our country and to protect the American
people. If we don't get that right, the rest is really just
conversation.
I hope the Democrats will come to the conclusion that their
statements in the past and their votes in the past in support of border
security are the right way to proceed and will continue in that
tradition we have had in the country in the past in which, on these
important issues, both sides come together and work to find common
ground.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Boozman). The majority leader.
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