On the recordFebruary 24, 2015
before the Senator from Illinois leaves the floor, I just want to thank him for his amazing leadership on this whole issue of immigration. The Senator and I share a similar background because my mother also was an immigrant, and the thought of our moms being ripped out of our lives is just untenable. We are not going to let it happen. I wish to thank him so much because he has been, I would say, the grandfather of the whole DREAMer movement. So thank you, Senator. We all know Republicans won in huge numbers in the 2014 election and they took over the Senate and they run it. They run it--or at least they are trying to run it. Let's be clear. Less than 8 weeks after they took over the Senate we are facing a shutdown, a shutdown of the very agency that protects the health, the safety, the lives of the American people--the Department of Homeland Security. We are 4 days away, and even if they come up with a continuing resolution, a small little patch, they are shutting down the programs that fund our firefighters and our first responders back home. So any way we look at it, this is a national disgrace. Think about what our friends abroad and those who are not our friends are thinking about this. Republicans say we are in danger. We have to go to war, put combat troops on the ground. But they are willing to shut down the Department that protects Americans in the homeland from a terrorist attack. This is a self-inflicted crisis made up by the Republicans.…
