On the recordMay 22, 2024
Madam President, I rise today along with Senators Murphy and Blumenthal and so many others in support of bipartisan legislation to improve our immigration system. As we face global and domestic threats, securing our borders and points of entry must be a top priority. As we have discussed, we had an opportunity in February to move forward in a bipartisan manner on broad and important reforms and security measures that Senators Murphy, Lankford, and Sinema spent months negotiating. I will note that this legislation, as Senator Blumenthal noted, included my bipartisan bill to keep our covenant with the thousands of Afghans living in the United States who fought shoulder to shoulder with our troops. It is a top priority of the VFW and top priority of the American Legion, a top priority of those who have served in Afghanistan. These were their interpreters. These were the ones that gathered their intelligence. And now 80,000 of them are in our country, living with a trapdoor under them, not knowing if they will be sent back to the Taliban. They are working, yes, but what they need is permanent status. And that is what this bill that I have with Senator Graham, with support, on the Afghan Adjustment Act. As cosponsors, there are Senators like Senator Mullin and Senator Wicker, the ranking member of Armed Services, and Senator Risch, the ranking on Foreign Relations. They are all on this bill.…





