Speech #1140056357

It is a milestone day in her career and a bright day for the Eastern District of New York. Mr. President. today the Senate will turn its attention to a divisive immigration bill that has no hope of becoming law. Todays vote wont be on a comprehensive bill. as was the one the Senate passed 2 years agoone that se cures our borders. provides a jolt to the economy. provides a pathway to citizenship for hardworking. lawabiding immigrants who pay their taxes to get right with the law. I want to be clear with the American people on this. Todays vote is nothing but a political show vote. Senator VITTER knows his bill has no chance of passing the Senate or being signed into law. As stated by my friend the Republican junior Senator from Nevadahere is what he said: "You know we have votes because people are running for president. so I am not surprised we have votes because people are running for governor." No other sentence sums it up better as to what a waste of time this is. and that is to say nothing about the substance of the bill. which has drawn opposition from nearly every important interest group. A broad coalition of major law enforcement groups. faith groups. labor. cities. elected officials. housing advocates. and immigrant rights groups oppose this bill. I suspect there are Members of the Republican caucus who oppose many parts of it. Why? Because it is a bill that would jeopardize hundreds of millions of dollars in the name of punishing immigrants and cities where they live. This bill would strip away community development block grants. community COPS grants to hire more cops. and SCAAP. a proposal that funds jurisdictions that are doing what many on the other side want them to do by locking up unauthorized immigrants who commit crimes. Everyone believes that if a person commits a serious crime unrelated to being an immigrantnot like crossing the border or forging a document but a serious crimelaw enforcement should be required to cooperate and those folks should be deported. plain and simple. But in the name of trying to help law enforcement. this bill hurts law enforcement because it will take away so many of the grants law enforcement needs. It will take away the grants that help create a way of incarcerating those who commit serious crimes.