Preventing Executive Overreach on Immigration Act of 2014

Floor Speech

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Mr. MURPHY of Florida. I am opposed in its current form.

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Mr. MURPHY of Florida. Mr. Speaker, this is the final amendment,
which will not kill the bill or send it back to committee. If adopted,
the amended bill will immediately proceed to final passage.

Mr. Speaker, my amendment would shield the unintentional victims of
the bill before us, namely, military families, survivors of domestic
violence and exploitation, and the Cuban people fleeing the brutal
communist regime of the Castros.

First, the amendment would preserve the government's policy of
protecting undocumented parents, spouses, and children of military
personnel from deportation. After the Pentagon heard from many
servicemembers who feared for the safety of their families back home,
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services instituted a parole in place
policy for respecting military families, supporting military readiness,
and honoring our commitment to those who serve our Nation so bravely.

Mr. Speaker, is parole in place for military families such an abuse
of power?

Surely, the majority of this House wants our brave men and women
serving on the battlefield to be able to focus on the mission and not
fear that their families will be taken from them. The slogan ``support
our troops'' must at least mean that.

Next, my amendment would protect the victims of domestic violence,
abuse, and severe human trafficking. We know a willingness to come
forward and cooperate with law enforcement can break the cycle of
violence and make justice possible for the real criminals. USCIS
developed a program to give victims of incredible violence temporary U
visas for abuse and T visas for trafficking. In 2010 alone, nearly
12,000 of these visas were given out so victims can come out of the
shadows.

What is it about visas for abuse victims that so enrage some in this
Chamber?

American women deserve better than a policy that threatens to deport
the victim while their abuser simply walks free. That is why the
National Task Force to End Sexual and Domestic Violence Against Women
wrote that this bill ``broadly sweeps large numbers of victims into its
scope and ignores the best interests of victims and their children.''

Finally, this motion would preserve our country's longstanding
practice of granting parole and, ultimately, green cards to Cuban
nationals. Those who escape the clutches of the nearly 56-year-old
communist dictatorship yearn for the freedom they are so brutally
denied just 90 miles from our shore.

To this day, Cuban democracy activists, including Las Damas de
Blanco, remain subject to arbitrary arrest, beatings, and imprisonment.
Without the protection spelled out in my amendment, fleeing survivors
of the Castro regime are denied a chance at freedom and deported.
Is that what we want?

Growing up in south Florida, I can tell you that the cultural
richness of the great State of Florida does not exist without Cuban
American immigrants, many of whom escaped with nothing more than their
lives.

To my friends across the aisle who call this a ``process'' argument,
let me say, if this House had done its job, we wouldn't face a process
question in the first place. You want a better process? Pass a bill.
Dispense of this measure before us and bring up H.R. 15, a real
immigration bill from the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Garcia). It will
reform our broken system, secure the border, create hundreds of
thousands of jobs, and reduce the deficit by nearly $1 trillion. It has
got the votes. We can make it the law by Christmas.

The American people asked for immigration reform, and this body voted
to half secure the border and deport DREAMers. Now we are looking at
ripping apart military families, prosecuting the victims of domestic
violence and human trafficking, and sending Cuban refugees back to the
brutal hands of the Castros.

I urge my colleagues, don't let this be the story of the 113th
Congress. Pass this motion to recommit and defeat this mean-spirited
bill before us.

I yield back the balance of my time.

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