McCaul Statement on H.R. 6

As the Lead Republican on the Foreign Affairs Committee and the Chairman Emeritus on the House Homeland Security Committee (TX-10), I issued the following statement on H.R. 6.

As a native Texan, I have seen firsthand the crisis at our southern border. As the former Chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, I know intimately well the many challenges immigrants and DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) recipients face.

Today’s vote is difficult for me, because I have great compassion for the immigrants who came to our nation as young children and who have built their lives in this country. Many of these children go to our children’s schools and work in our communities. I have interacted with them personally. That’s why I introduced a bill last year to provide a solution for DACA recipients and those eligible for the program, along with a long-term solution to strengthen our nation’s border security. Every single Democrat voted against my bill.

Now, rather than the Democrats inviting Republicans to the table on H.R. 6, they’ve chosen to play a political game by putting forth a partisan bill that does nothing to address border security, the root causes of our broken immigration system, or even address the current humanitarian crisis that is ongoing on our southern border. Additionally, I have concerns about the provision that would allow criminal aliens to achieve green card status. 

Instead of playing partisan politics with those whose lives remain in limbo at no fault of their own, I call on my colleagues to come together to address the root causes of illegal immigration. Otherwise, we are kicking the can down the road on the tough immigration issues that we were sent here to address. If we take this course of action, our next generation will have to make another tough call when this situation arises once again for the children who make the long trek to the United States in the future.

The capacity of our border agents to handle the current crisis narrows by the minute and requires a bipartisan, holistic solution. Once again, I ask my colleagues to work in a fashion on a comprehensive package that we truly believe can get across the finish line and not merely for political points.