Political Quotes

“I think our caucus was confused and frustrated by how long it took for our Republican colleagues to come to the table and start discussions. The minute that we passed a 2-week continuing resolution for the Department of Homeland Security, we knew we were going to have to enter into some hard discussions about how we can rein in ICE's lawlessness, which is what the American people demand. And yet during the first week of that 2-week continuing resolution, there was no clarity over whom we were supposed to be negotiating with. Was it Senate Republicans? Was it the White House? And, in fact, it wasn't until last night, literally on the verge of the shutdown, that we got our first offer of text from the White House--far too late to be able to engage in any compromise before the deadline. So I wish we weren't here. I wish our Republican colleagues and the White House had shown more seriousness from the start. But Senate Democrats have been clear that we have all taken an oath--an oath to uphold the law of the country--and this Department of Homeland Security, this ICE, is out of control. They are tear-gassing our children's schools. They are killing American citizens. They are disappearing legal migrants. I went down to Texas, a couple of weeks ago, and sat across a table from two elementary school students who had been detained illegally for 6 weeks over Christmas, while their mother wasn't home.”