Bob Menendez: “I have joined in supporting and take a backseat to no one in our efforts to secure the borders of the United States.…”

“I have joined in supporting and take a backseat to no one in our efforts to secure the borders of the United States. However, the militarizing of the border is something I clearly do not believe is in our collective interests. Now, Senators Cornyn, Kyl, and McCain seek to offer border enforcement amendments to the supplemental we are debating, but these amendments are, in my mind, merely an opportunity to grandstand instead of solving the country's real immigration problems. These amendments would deplete critical stimulus funds that are greatly needed to support a recovering economy. It is an economy that recovers that ultimately generates the revenues to fund some of the very initiatives we would like to see. It is important to realize that many of the remaining stimulus funds--much of the funding is for mandatory programs. These are programs we must pay for under current law, such as unemployment insurance, food stamps, FMAP, to mention a few.”