This Week in Washington

I issued the following statements regarding the 75th anniversary of D-Day; H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act; and possible tariffs on imports from Mexico:

75th Anniversary of D-Day
On June 6, 1944, Allied troops stormed the beaches of Normandy, France, embarking on a daring mission that would ultimately lead to the end of World War II. This year, we commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day by honoring the courage and valor of those soldiers, sailors, and airmen whose service and sacrifice provided for the liberation of an oppressed Europe and the ultimate defeat of Nazi tyranny. Our World War II heroes truly are America’s Greatest Generation.

H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act
The crisis along our Southern border is real and continues to worsen as we see record levels of illegal immigrants being intercepted by Border Patrol. While this crisis worsens, Speaker Pelosi and the Democrat House Majority have had opportunity to provide legislative modifications to close loopholes in current law and the monetary assistance needed to deal with this immigration crisis, improve our safety and secure our border. Instead, House Democrats have continued with their radical agenda with the consideration of H.R. 6, another fraudulently-named bill – the American Dream and Promise Act.

While I strongly support an earned path to legal status and/or citizenship for the Dreamer population, H.R. 6 was loaded with toxic provisions that weaken our security and unfairly treat those who are trying to follow the proper, legal approach to citizenship.  The bill does this by providing a blanket approach to immediate citizenship for all, including criminals with felonies and serious criminal records.  For example, it gives citizenship preference to MS-13 gang members over persons who came here legally and who are following the proper steps to obtain naturalization. 

Not only does this endanger our communities but it is also unfair to those who are working within the current parameters of our existing immigration laws to become legal U.S. citizens. Our Dreamers, who through no fault of their own are here illegally, should have an earned pathway to legal status and/or citizenship.  Unfortunately, H.R. 6 sets back efforts to address Dreamers in a successful manner.    

I voted against H.R. 6 because it does not take steps to secure the border and it is laced with poison pills that would ultimately worsen our immigration problems. It opens the floodgates and would encourage millions of additional people to enter our country illegally.  This will further expand pressures on our schools, hospitals, law enforcement and safety-net programs to the detriment of hardworking American families.  

When this bill came to the House floor, the Democrat Majority did not allow for any opportunity to amend and improve the bill with real solutions that would help the American people and secure our border. When Speaker Pelosi is ready to stop with hyper-liberal political show-votes, I stand ready to work with all of my House colleagues to develop bipartisan solutions to secure our border, address the challenges of our Dreamer population, reform our broken immigration system and protect the safety and security of Texas families.

Tariffs on Mexico
As Speaker Pelosi and the House Democrat Majority continue to play political games instead of working to solve our border and immigration crises, President Trump is trying to take steps to solve the security and humanitarian crisis along the border. Mexico should also be working with the U.S. to help alleviate this crisis which affects both countries and our joint border. In an attempt to encourage Mexico’s participation on this issue, President Trump has proposed tariffs on goods from Mexico.

With regard to tariffs, I generally oppose the long-term imposition of tariffs. That said, I believe that it is acceptable to use them on a limited basis to deal with trade issues. On the other hand, I do not support the use of tariffs to deal with diplomatic issues, such as the current problems along the U.S.-Mexico border. Even though I disagree with using tariffs for diplomatic negotiations, it does appear that President Trump’s actions have motivated Mexico to engage and come to the table. Given that negotiations are taking place, it is my hope that we delay any final implementation of tariffs in the hope of finding a solution with Mexico to help stop the flow of illegal migration. We should also investigate the use of other tools instead of tariffs for these purposes.  For example, instead of tariffs, we may want to consider the taxation of outbound remittances to Mexico and ‘Northern Triangle’ countries from foreign persons in the U.S.  This type of tool would help encourage those countries to engage diplomatically with us without hurting American consumers and businesses."