David Perdue: “I rise today to talk about an experience I had this weekend that was extremely memorable to me. I used to live in Texas.…”

“I rise today to talk about an experience I had this weekend that was extremely memorable to me. I used to live in Texas. I used to be involved in businesses in the Valley, as they call it there--from Brownsville to Weslaco, to Edinburg, to McCowan. This past weekend, a good colleague of mine, Senator Steve Daines from Montana, and I traveled to the southern border to visit the Customs and Border Patrol people, to visit with ICE people, and to see firsthand what goes on in a typical night. We were there overnight on Sunday night. We had a remarkable evening, and we saw firsthand what these people are up against. Before I make my comments, I want to say that from Deputy Chief Ortiz all the way down in the organization in that sector--the McCowan sector that we were in--the best of America is in uniform right now, every day and night, protecting our rights and privileges here in the United States. I was proud to meet these people and to be a part of this trip. What we saw this weekend is disturbing on many levels. We spoke directly to Border Patrol agents. We went to the retention center. We saw firsthand that we have not just illegal immigration there, but we have a national security crisis. We saw it firsthand. This is a situation that the border agents face every day, and it is a grim situation. It is shameful that we here in Congress have not given Border Patrol agents adequate resources to do their jobs.…”