Political Quotes

“I thank the Senator for his comments and insight and contribution to the debate, as well as his clear mind and thinking that causes us to analyze how to handle things. The problem we have today, at the most fundamental level, is that in 1987, as Senator Grassley has been so passionate and so clear about, we voted for the 1987 amnesty, and amnesty occurred immediately with the promise of enforcement in the future. So in the view of Senator Grassley, and the view of the American people by a 4-to-1 margin in a recent poll, we should have the enforcement first and then we will talk about amnesty. All right? Senator Lee offered an amendment that dealt with this process. Under the legislation we have here, the question of enforcement is almost entirely given to the Secretary of Homeland Security, who has basically said enforcement is good now and we don't need any more enforcement and that she would basically certify or establish whether we have an effective border and enforcement system, and if not she would issue a report and would turn it over to a commission that had no power and they could review it. But that absolves Congress of their responsibility. With that as background, the Senator offered a very interesting amendment that I think places the responsibility for enforcement where it should be. Would the Senator explain his thinking on that?”