Rubén Hinojosa: “I was born and raised on the border, and I stand and I speak in favor of the Reyes substitute amendment and against the…”

“I was born and raised on the border, and I stand and I speak in favor of the Reyes substitute amendment and against the Traficant proposal. I find it incredibly ironic that exactly one year ago today a Marine assisting the INS on our border shot and killed Ezequiel Hernandez, an 18-year-old U.S. citizen from Redford, Texas. Zeke, as he was called, had the misfortune of living on our southern border in an area known for drug trafficking, and he paid the price with his life. I have to ask all of my colleagues here if they believe that that is fair. Ezequiel became a casualty of America's drug wars, the victim of an upsurge of violence along the 2,000-mile United States and Mexican border that has put residents and law enforcement officials on edge. Zeke is dead and there is nothing we can do to bring him back. It is unfair to our fighting men and women, and it does harm to our national security. The military can provide assistance in numerous ways without this unwarranted diversion of troops. All of our budgets are tight. Putting troops on our borders is extremely costly, and it is a bad use of resources. These funds could be better used training our Armed Forces for better war-fighting missions or ensuring Border Patrol agents are properly trained and have the resources needed to enforce our Nation's laws and to protect themselves. Mr. Chairman, I urge each and every colleague to vote against the Traficant amendment and to support the Reyes amendment.”