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[Pages H1020-H1021]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RADICAL OPEN BORDERS POLICIES THAT ARE DANGEROUS TO OUR CITIZENS
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
North Carolina (Mr. Budd) for 5 minutes.
Mr. BUDD. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to oppose a truly radical piece
of legislation that was recently introduced in this Chamber.
The New Way Forward Act, as it is called, introduced with the support
of
[[Page H1021]]
more than three dozen Democratic cosponsors, decriminalizes illegal
immigration, makes it nearly impossible for border authorities to
detain and deport immigrants with criminal convictions, and forces
taxpayers to foot the bill to bring back previously deported criminal
illegal immigrants.
{time} 1015
Mr. Speaker, if this bill were to become law, it would enable illegal
immigrants who have committed crimes abroad to be returned to the U.S.,
and it would allow them to gain a pathway to citizenship.
The bill eliminates the provision in current law that forbids an
immigrant from entering the United States if they have committed drug
crimes or any crimes involving moral turpitude. Examples of crimes
involving moral turpitude include child molestation, kidnapping, rape,
murder, and more. It is unthinkable that we would allow anyone who has
committed those crimes to freely enter our country.
To add to the egregiousness of this legislation, it calls on the
Department of Homeland Security to pay for the return of previously
deported illegal immigrants. Under the bill, any immigrant deported
since April 1996 would be allowed to return to the U.S. as long as they
met a stunningly lax set of criteria. It is ridiculous to require
American taxpayers to foot the bill to bring previously deported
individuals back onto U.S. soil.
The bill would make it more difficult for ICE to detain an immigrant
with a criminal record. Agents would be forced to prove that a suspect
poses a danger or a flight risk without using the immigrant's past
criminal history as a sole factor.
One of the Democratic cosponsors on this bill even proclaimed that it
would end deportation for people who had contact with the criminal
legal system. I would say it is common sense that a serious criminal
conviction should lead to deportation.
Worse yet, this prevents ICE from deporting immigrants who have been
convicted of crimes with an average sentence of less than 5 years. This
bill would allow an alien who committed crimes like auto theft, weapons
crimes, identity theft, and fraud to remain in the country.
Like many Americans, I want people to enter our country through the
legal process--we want them here--and then to stay on the right side of
the law. Legal immigration is what makes our country great. But we
cannot pass bills, like this one, that incentivize more people to come
here illegally or imposes no penalty on those who commit serious
crimes.
I think most Americans would agree that we should welcome those who
come to our land in a legal, merit-based way and that dangerous,
illegal immigrants should not be allowed to come into our country or
stay in our country.
Unfortunately, this bill makes a mockery of that principle and
replaces it with a set of radical, open-border policies that are
dangerous to our citizens and our communities. It is for that reason
that it should be soundly defeated.
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