Mary Gay Scanlon: “Many people say ours is a nation of immigrants. But our Nation also has an unfortunate history of political opportunists…”

“Many people say ours is a nation of immigrants. But our Nation also has an unfortunate history of political opportunists who attack the latest wave of immigrants and seek to stoke fear and chaos in order to gain or cling to power. Whether the attacks were against my ancestors, the Irish; those at the southern border today; or the many other groups in between, we have heard the same language and scare tactics year after year, generation after generation. But then as now, those attacks are a sham. They are attention-seeking to divide and distract us from their proponents' lack of seriousness, their lack of solutions, and, at times, their own misconduct. Now, I rise today in support of the Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend- Lease Act and hope to send it quickly to President Biden's desk. The Senate acted quickly to pass this bill and send it our way. Eighty years ago, the U.S. created the lend-lease program to provide military and humanitarian aid to Great Britain and our Allies in Europe as they stood on the front lines to oppose the Axis powers that threatened democracies around the world, including our own. Today, the Ukrainian people are standing on the front lines in the fight for democracy and against tyranny. The U.S. needs to provide them with every possible measure of humanitarian and military aid.…”