Joni Ernst: “I rise in support of the Laken Riley Act and ask my fellow colleagues to vote for my amendment, Sarah's Law. Combined…”

“I rise in support of the Laken Riley Act and ask my fellow colleagues to vote for my amendment, Sarah's Law. Combined, these actions will close the loopholes that for too long have allowed murderers who come here illegally to roam free in our communities and commit more crimes. These two young women, Sarah Root and Laken Riley, and their families deserve justice. Folks, we can make this happen tonight. After all, this is not a partisan fight. I am honored to have my colleague Senator Fetterman from the great State of Pennsylvania cosponsoring Sarah's Law. The truth is, the border crisis has impacted every State, not just southern border States like Texas and Arizona but New York, Georgia, Pennsylvania, and, yes, folks, even Iowa. The end of this month marks 9 years since Iowan's Michelle Root and Scott Root, whom I know personally, woke up to every parent's worst nightmare: Their daughter Sarah was killed by a drunk driver who was an illegal immigrant. Sarah, a 21-year-old from Council Bluffs, IA, had just graduated from Bellevue University in Nebraska with a 4.0 GPA. She was headed home after celebrating this milestone--a very important day in her life--with her family and friends. In an instant, an illegal immigrant, Edwin Mejia, who was drunk-driving, with a blood alcohol three times the legal limit, struck and killed her. One would think that Sarah's killer would clearly meet Immigration and Customs Enforcement's ``enforcement priorities'' but no--no.…”