Political Quotes

“I rise to offer this simple amendment to the legislation before us today. In the post-9/11 world, our primary concern has to be stopping terrorists from penetrating our borders. Chairman Sensenbrenner's dedication to fixing gaps in our security is commendable, and I am proud to join him and Chairman King in improving our border security capabilities while allowing American citizens and legal immigrants to continue contributing to our economy. Both Congress and the 9/11 Commission have identified the US-VISIT biometric entry and exit system as essential to preventing terrorists from entering the country through land borders, airports, and seaports. Currently, US-VISIT kiosks are deployed at most airports and some land borders, where travelers submit biometric information, including digital fingerprints and a photograph, and the Department of Homeland Security screens the data against terrorist watch lists and criminal record databases. Since its implementation, US-VISIT has caught more than 900 murderers, pedophiles, and other dangerous criminals attempting to enter the United States. Still, the system records only a fraction of foreign arrivals and does not yet record when foreign travelers leave the country. While US-VISIT is presently being used at some of the busiest border crossings, the Department has yet to deploy the tracking system at all land border ports of entry.…”