Zoe Lofgren: “I thank Mr. Correa for yielding, and I thank him for organizing this Special Order. It is a part of immigration law--it…”

“I thank Mr. Correa for yielding, and I thank him for organizing this Special Order. It is a part of immigration law--it is not a violation of immigration law, it is a part of immigration law--that people fleeing for their lives can come to the United States and apply for asylum. Not only is that in our statutes, but it is also in a treaty that we ratified. People concerned about the rule of law ought to realize this is part of our law. Here is what is happening. People fleeing for their lives, primarily from Central America, are going to the ports of entry. In some cases, we have received reports that they make their claim and their children are taken away from them, I believe in violation of law. In other cases, even though they are there to make an application, they are turned away by Border Patrol. They then go down the road and find a Border Patrol agent to turn themselves in to, to make their claim for political asylum. And when that happens, their children are then taken away from them. Mr. Speaker, there is a report today from the Department of Health and Human Services, which says that since this policy was adopted by the Trump administration, 1,329 kids have been taken from their parents in this cruel policy. I think that this is not the American way. Mr. Speaker, I saw a report from CNN today.…”