Regaining Operational Control of Our Border

Floor Speech

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Mrs. KIM of California. Mr. Speaker, I visited the southern border last week in Eagle Pass, Texas, to see the situation at our border firsthand and to hear from Border Patrol, landowners, judges, and community members on how this is impacting them.

This was my fourth border visit since I have been in Congress. The crisis at our border is worse than ever.

Just last month, CBP reported 302,000 illegal crossings. That is enough people to fill out the Anaheim Angel Stadium nearly seven times over, just from one month.

I heard from Border Patrol who said they are spreading themselves thin as we see more crossings. They have become caretakers instead of devoting their time to handling the backlog of illegal migrants or working to protect our border.

The border facilities are expensive. In fact, the Del Rio and Eagle Pass facilities alone cost $25 million to maintain every month. This doesn't include the salaries of Border Patrol agents.

I heard from county leaders who said that every week they perform autopsies on dead migrants found at the border. The price that both migrants and our communities pay is staggering.

Meanwhile, we have some reports of the Biden administration storing unused physical barriers and technologies at taxpayers' expense that could be used to help secure our border.

The numbers are startling, and the stories are heartbreaking. As a mother, grandmother, and immigrant who came here legally as a young girl, seeing these migrants being exploited by cartels breaks my heart.

Let me be clear, there is nothing fair, humane, or compassionate about the Biden administration's border policies. In fact, the Biden administration and DHS Secretary Mayorkas' open border policies have only emboldened cartels, giving them $32 million a week profit. While cartels line their pockets and funnel fentanyl into our streets and our schools, Americans are endangered, and our Border Patrol is overworked and overwhelmed.

Sadly, this has undermined the legal immigration process and all those who have been waiting and playing by the rules.

This year, marks 100 years of the U.S. Border Patrol. Let's do right by these brave men and women who have dangerous and demanding jobs and give them the tools they need to protect us.

Mr. Speaker, I introduced a bipartisan border strategy bill to gain operational control of our southern border, and I am committed to do my part in being part of the solution here. The Biden administration must come to the table and do the same. Thanking Mike Markus for his Dedication to the Water District

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Mrs. KIM of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise to thank the Orange County Water District general manager, Mike Markus, for his dedicated service to the water district and to ensuring access to clean water for our Orange County communities and residents.

During his impressive 35-year career, Mike managed the implementation of the Groundwater Replenishment System program, which has become the largest potable reuse project in the world with a capacity to hold enough water for 1 million people.

Mike has received many notable and well-deserved awards for his work, including most recently the USC Sonny Astani Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award.

He has been a great resource to me and my office and I appreciate his partnership in supporting our communities. It has been a great privilege to work with his son, Dan, who is the staff director on the House Foreign Affairs Indo-Pacific Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mike for everything, and I wish him a very wonderful and successful retirement.

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