Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this misguided and politically motivated legislation. In fact it would be dangerous and irresponsible for this body to prohibit the Department of Homeland Security from exercising prosecutorial discretion. DHS and ICE must be able to prioritize the detention and the deportation of people who pose a threat to public safety and national security, as opposed to deporting, for example, college students who were brought to this country by their parents. Or, perhaps, spouses of U.S. citizens serving in the military. It is not even a close question. The reality is discretion is and always has been exercised by every prosecutor in this country. To my knowledge, Republicans have never questioned this, never challenged it, until the current President began prioritizing dangerous criminals for immigration enforcement. As former Solicitor General Walter Dellinger recently wrote: In light of how legally conservative the Justice Department opinion really is, it is a wonder that this issue has become the subject of such heated, occasionally apocalyptic commentary. Those who object to the President's efforts to unite families should stop hiding behind unfounded legal alarums and debate the President's actions on the merits. That is very good advice, Mr. Speaker, and I urge defeat of this cynical and unwarranted legislation.”