Political Quotes

“It is an honor to cohost this Special Order with Congresswoman Dexter. Again, I thank the gentlewoman for her caring voice. Obviously, listening to these horrific stories that are impacting our children in this Nation is very difficult to absorb. The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Refugee Resettlement has increased its coordination with ICE. That partnership is very troublesome. It bothers me to think of what can happen. ORR is sharing data on prospective guardians for unaccompanied children with ICE, and then ICE is increasingly using these children as lures to detain family members. Our children should not be used as pawns. This, as a civilized nation, has an image cast to the entire world. A civilized nation nurtures its children. A civilized nation respects its children. A civilized nation loves its children. Where is our moral compass here? Beyond the impact on these children and families, beyond the hurt and the physical and mental damage, there is an image cast to the entire world. This uncivilized behavior is a scar on our history. It is one that indicates that unaccompanied children are now waiting an average of more than 200 days in ORR detention, despite the many, many family members who are ready and able to care for them. That is more than double the highest average seen during the first Trump administration of some 93 days and, yes, more than six times as long as the 30-day average seen under the Biden administration.”