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Floor Speech

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Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam President, this Friday is going to mark the beginning of the 51st annual March for Life, and we have got thousands of Americans and, indeed, hundreds of Tennesseans who are coming to our Nation's Capital to celebrate life, to talk about how to defend life, and to uphold the sanctity of life.

This is the second March for Life since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. We know, with the Dobbs decision, it really sent the authority back to the States and to the people, and that is where it does belong. Across the Nation, we have seen States step up and take responsibility for the rules and regulations around abortion practices.

Now, one of these areas they have looked at is informed consent laws. This would require abortion providers to inform expectant mothers of all the medical risks to the mother and to the child because of this abortion procedure. What we know is that informed consent is a very important part of medical ethics.

According to the AMA's medical ethics code, this is what it says:

Patients have the right to receive information and ask questions about treatments so that they can make well- considered decisions about care.

But not all States have informed consent laws, and there are abortion providers who withhold this information, which prevents these expectant mothers from understanding all of the risks that they face. A nationwide safeguard regarding informed consent is something that is long overdue.

So this week, I introduced the Women's Right to Know Act, which would set reasonable medical requirements for physicians to meet and protect the life of the mother and the child before the abortion can be performed. So they would have to meet these standards and give this information to the patients.

Now, the providers would be required to explain all of the medical risks associated with the abortion procedure, explain the probable gestational age and development features of the unborn child at the time the abortion is to be performed, and to present this information at least 24 hours in advance of an abortion procedure.

We think that this is essential legislation that will really do so much to raise the safety standards and protect the health of vulnerable women, and it will help to save lives. Immigration

Madam President, last week, House Republicans launched their impeachment proceedings against Secretary Ali Mayorkas for a simple reason: The Secretary of Homeland Security does not believe in securing the homeland. We know that he has failed to carry out his duties, and we know it because of the numbers.

Over 8\1/2\ million illegal immigrants have come into this country on his watch. That includes 1.7 million or thereabouts of what are called known ``got-aways.'' These are people who can be seen on surveillance, but Border Patrol cannot get to them.

There are also tens of thousands of pounds of fentanyl that have been trafficked into this country, and once it is across that border, it ends up in your towns, in your communities. This, we know, is happening.

In addition, there are hundreds of individuals on the Terror Watchlist who have been apprehended at the southern border, including 30 since the start of fiscal 2024.

In addition to this, there are thousands of individuals from countries of interest. We wonder why they are choosing to come to the country, but we do know many of them are young men. They are not coming with a family; they come separately.

These numbers alone would give reason for why the Secretary should be removed from office. His job is to secure the homeland. Obviously, with these numbers, with the concerns that come with these numbers, the homeland is not secure.

Ultimately, you have to look at the harm that this administration is inflicting on our country with its open border policies because those harms go way beyond the stats I have given you today.

These policies of this administration, of this Secretary, are failing this country. They are upending the rule of law, which is foundational to this democratic Republic. It is foundational.

At every opportunity, what is astounding to me is this administration continues to look for ways to make illegal legal. We have seen this action with Executive orders. We have seen this with Agency rules and regulations. We see it at the border as they try to find new ways-- maybe it is using their app. Maybe it is letting you know that they are coming. But what they are trying to do is say: Discard the rule of law. We are going to give you a new way to come here. And by the way, we are doing everything we can to make illegal legal.

Does that make any sense at all? Of course not.

Under President Biden and this administration, illegally entering the country is something that they say: Well, we don't consider that to be a crime.

Now, if you or I, Madam President, were in Mexico and said ``Oh, the border crossing is backed up. We are just going to walk across the Rio Grande. We are going to just walk on back into the country because it is faster. We don't want to drive to the border crossing. We are here, there is the river, and we are just going to skip on over there,'' do you know what? We would be apprehended. And where would we be taken? We would be taken to jail. We would face prosecution. Think about that. Why is it that we would do that? Because it is illegal.

But to those who are trying to enter our country illegally--and by the way, it is not just from Central America. Border Patrol tells us we have had people from about 170 countries over the last year come to that southern border. And who is in charge of all of this? It is the cartels that work on the Mexico side of the border. They are big, global businesses, and they are bringing people from that many different countries to our southern border. They are bringing thousands of pounds of fentanyl. By the way, who creates the chemicals for fentanyl? China. They are in cahoots on this.

But it is so disappointing to me that at every opportunity, this administration is trying to make illegal legal. In doing that, what they are doing is putting lawbreakers ahead of law-abiding Americans.

Secretary Mayorkas last week admitted that 85 percent of the illegal immigrants who are apprehended at our border are released into the country--85 percent. These are people who are not being sent before a judge for an asylum hearing. These are individuals who are being given a notice to appear, and then they are waved on into the country. Then they are given a phone, they are given food, and they are given a plane ticket to wherever they want to go. And who pays for this? Who is footing the bill on this? We know who is paying for this. It is the hard-working taxpayer. They are bearing the cost for this.

With these hundreds of thousands of migrants crossing into our country each month--by the way, last month, 302,000 people. Think about the cities in your State. How many of them have more than 300,000 residents in that city? This is the number coming across that border.

What we have seen is that States are taking this matter into their own hands, States like Arizona and Texas that have constructed their own barriers across the southern border. What has the Biden administration done to them? Instead of saying ``Thank you for helping us carry out this duty to protect illegal entry into our country. Thank you for the assistance''--no, no. That is not what they have done. They are suing the States. They are suing them for trying to protect their property. This makes no sense.

Let's think about this. There is immigration law in this country. There is a way to come into this country. There is a way to ask for asylum. It is not to go pay a cartel and have them bring you across our border and enter the country illegally. So these States are saying: We are going to protect our sovereignty. By the way, we have ranchers and farmers who live here on the border. We are going to allow barriers to go up so that it helps to protect their private property.

This administration says: If you do that, we will sue you.

Under this administration, border agents are not putting up fences and razor wire. They are actually out there cutting the razor wire because this administration is telling them that is what they have to do. They don't want to do it, but they are being told they have to do it.

That is how far this administration is going to make illegal legal. They are saying to law-abiding citizens: You can't protect your ranch. You can't protect your farm. They are saying to Texas and Arizona: You can't put up containers. You can't put up razor wire. You cannot protect your State. We are going to make you sit by and watch as we violate Federal law.

Whoever would have thought--whoever would have thought--that you would have an administration going in here and finding ways to violate Federal law, but that is exactly what they are doing, and they are doing it every day.

Once the migrants have illegally come into the country, the administration doesn't just resettle them; they use taxpayer dollars to even pay for their healthcare. I have already mentioned they get a phone, food, clothing, and a plane ticket to wherever they want to go.

In fiscal year 2022, taxpayers shouldered the cost for $94.3 million of medical expenses for these migrants. In fiscal year 2021, Immigration and Customs Enforcement healthcare budgeted more than $74 million for the Department of Veterans Affairs to assist with outside referrals and medical claims processing. Think about this. The VA--the VA--is subsidizing healthcare for illegal immigrants. So while the VA is helping to treat migrants, more than 1 million veterans are waiting for staff to process their claims. Can you see the problem here?

We are talking about healthcare for our Nation's veterans, people who have raised their hands and have sworn an oath and have worn the uniform, men and women who have protected this Nation, and we have said: When you do this, we will provide your healthcare. But oh, no. Look at what is happening. Those who are illegally entering the country are being put in front of our Nation's veterans. And right now, we are seeing this backlog grow. There had been a quarter of a million claims about this time last year, and then it went to 400,000, and now we are at a million--a million. But those who have illegally come, they are put at the head of the line, and our veterans are at the back. Do you think that is fair? Is there anyone in this Chamber who thinks that is fair and that is right?

On top of this, we learn now that New York City--again, led by Democrats--in New York City, what are they doing? They are shutting down high schools, and they are sending kids home for remote learning. We tried that during COVID, right? It didn't work out very well, did it? But kids in New York are being forced to go home so that their school can be used as a shelter.

You know, it might be more appropriate if New York City took some of those Federal buildings where the workers are not showing up for work and used those for temporary housing. But allowing these facilities to be used and kids to be sent home and placed on remote learning--it is so inappropriate, and it is wrong. But at every step, my Democratic colleagues have supported this administration's disastrous open border policies.

And for more than 7 months, they have refused to bring H.R. 2 to this floor for a vote. H.R. 2 is the House Republicans' Secure the Border Act. It would help end this crisis. In fact, since the House passed H.R. 2 and sent it over here to the Senate, the Senate Judiciary Committee has held 83 hearings--83 hearings and meetings since that bill was passed. H.R. 2 has never been brought up for 1 minute of discussion in this Chamber. It just shows you: Open border is this administration's policy. This is what they want.

Now, I think that it is very telling what the Democrats are for on this. Their inaction on what is a crucial issue and, indeed, the No. 1 issue with the American people reveals a lot about their priorities.

But I would have to ask my Democratic colleagues: Why is it that you are for illegal immigration? Why is it that you are working so hard to make illegal legal? What is it about circumventing the rule of law that you think is the right thing to do? Do you want to circumvent the rule of law and throw away all immigration policy? Or is it just you want to allow illegal entry into this country?

I will tell you what, Madam President: We need to know who is coming in this country and why they are coming. I would yield time on this floor to any Democrat who wanted to come and explain why you are working so hard to make illegal legal. I would like to hear that explanation because it seems, every time we turn around, you are looking for some way to codify illegal entry into this country.

How about abiding by the rule of law, because when you circumvent the rule of law, what do you do? You devalue our citizenship. What about the thousands of people who are working legally toward citizenship, who are spending money, who are spending time? Have any of you spent time going to a naturalization ceremony, a citizenship ceremony? Have you heard these stories of how hard people work, how they want to be a U.S. citizen?

But, oh, no. What some of you want to do is devalue that. You want to say: Let's make it OK for people to just waltz across the Rio Grande, walk in here, and enter this country illegally outside of the rule of law, wait 10 years to get an asylum hearing.

What is right about that? And you know the answer: Nothing is right. Nothing is right. And it is amazing to me. Give me an explanation of why you think you should preference people who illegally come in this country before our Nation's veterans and hard-working taxpayers. Why do you do that? Why do you think that that is OK?

I will tell you what right now: Tennesseans don't think that is OK. They don't think having a million people on the VA backlog for services is OK while you are spending millions of dollars for healthcare for veterans for processing claims. They don't think that sending outside referrals for them when veterans can't get into community care--this is not right.

I can't imagine an explanation from one of my Democratic colleagues that would say: I think that is what we ought to do. We ought to just say: Illegal immigrants, we are going to take care of you first, and everybody else to the back of the line.

But, in essence, that is what your actions are showing that you support. Your actions and inactions are showing that you think making illegal legal, that that is a really good thing.

And the other thing I don't get about all of this: Each and every one of you know you do not come to that southern border on your own; you have paid a cartel. People pay the cartels.

And then, Border Patrol will show you the bands and bracelets that are put on people. What it shows is the cartel and what this person needs to do to work out their fee, because not everybody can pay the $5,000 or $10,000 to the cartel to illegally come in this country and then have the U.S. taxpayer finish the job for them once they get to the U.S. border because they get their asylum claim, their notice to appear, their phone, their food, their clothes, their plane tickets, and their healthcare.

But they have a band on them, a tracking device, and that is what tells the cartel and their job. It may be going to a gang. It may be going to a work crew. It may be selling drugs--fentanyl--and pushing that into our communities. It may be that these people are part of a human trafficking ring, they are going to be put into human trafficking and sex trafficking.

So to my Democratic colleagues: Do you think this is compassionate? How do you say this defines compassion? It is beyond me. You all know that this is modern-day slavery. And if you haven't seen these bands, I think there are some of us that would show you these bands that people have to wear, will show you the Department of Homeland Security stats that shows that just a few years ago, human trafficking was a $500- million-a-year business. Today, DHS tells us it is a $150-billion-a- year profit center. That is right: $150 billion a year.

Let me tell you something. These women and children that are being sex trafficked, they are being mentally, physically, emotionally, sexually, and drug abused as they make these journeys. You all know that. But why would you say an open border is a compassionate policy? It is not.

This is a humanitarian crisis. This is a crisis where people are having their lives ruined. They are sold a bill of goods by a cartel who is incentivized because the cartel says: Biden said come on, border is open. The policy is an open border.

You know, it is imperative that we stand with the rule of law. I have got a couple of pieces of legislation that I filed hoping that they will help. One is the CONTAINER Act that would allow States to protect their portion of that southern border, give them the ability. They have got that right. If the Federal Government falls down on their job, they have got the right to protect their citizens, and they want to do that.

The other is No VA Resources for Illegal Aliens Act. This is something that I have done along with Senator Tuberville to stop the administration's Department of Veterans Affairs from providing taxpayer-funded healthcare to illegal aliens or engaging in claims processing for anyone unlawfully present in the United States.

It is time that we secure this southern border and that we end this illegal entry into this country.

(Ms. CORTEZ MASTO assumed the Chair.)

(Mr. OSSOFF assumed the Chair.)

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