Speech #1040176987

Speaker. last night President Clinton delivered a good speech. Our hope is that he follows his words with his deeds. President Clinton acknowledged in his address last night the need to pay special attention to our problems with illegal immigration. However. President Clinton forgot to mention to the American people that he vetoed a bill which would have provided Californians $1.6 billion in reimbursement funds over the next 5 years for the costs of providing health care to illegal immigrants. He also vetoed the 1996 CommerceStateJustice Appropriations Act. thus denying Californians more than $300 million as reimbursement for the cost of incarcerating alieri felons. Mr. President. your actions speak louder than words. and words alone will not solve our problem. This lack of attention has a human cost. Last year at San Diegos border with Mexico. a Border Partol agent fell to his death while chasing illegal immigrants. Last week. a man trying to evade U.S. Border Partol agents plung &to his death. and five other men were injured when they ran off a 120foot cliff near Otay Lakes Dam. Words are hollow if they are not backed up with actions. Our hope in the California delegation is that President Clinton joins us with the force of his actions. as we address these difficult immigration problems.