Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I wish to discuss sanctuary cities. Two women, Kate Steinle and Marilyn Pharis, were killed in California over the summer, both allegedly by undocumented individuals with criminal records. The suspect in each case had recently been released from local custody without notice to Federal immigration officials, which could have resulted in those individuals being removed from the country instead of being released. I believe these murders could have been prevented if there were open channels of communication between local law enforcement and Federal immigration authorities about dangerous individuals. In both cases, those lines of communication broke down, and two women died. In my view, local law enforcement agencies should be required to notify Federal authorities--if such notification is requested--that they plan to release a dangerous individual, such as a convicted felon. This is a reasonable solution that would target those criminals who shouldn't be released back onto the street. While I do support mandatory communication between local, State, and Federal officials, I do not support the bill before us today. The bill we will soon be voting on would target all undocumented immigrants for deportation. It would divert already stretched local law enforcement resources away from dangerous criminals and from policing in their own communities. I do not support such an action.…”