Sheila Jackson Lee: “I thank the gentlewoman from California for her years of service, appointed service, recognized service, for we have…”

“I thank the gentlewoman from California for her years of service, appointed service, recognized service, for we have gone to the southern border many times. I am a resident of the southern border. I am committed to the people of the southern border, as I am to the people of the United States, and most importantly, to the heroic workers who work for the Federal Government. First, let me say that any regular order of business of this House should be the opening of the government and paying the workers now. I have been alongside of every aspect of the southern border, every State, including California, New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas. I have been to every part of the southern border. I have seen the terrain. I have gone up to the Rio Grande and on the Rio Grande several times. I have seen it at its fullest and I have seen it at its most narrow. I have seen tunnels. I have seen the San Diego wall, if you will. I have seen the steel fencing. I have spoken to Border Patrol agents alongside of the border. The tragedy of young Felipe, who passed away; I went to the part where he walked up with his father and they presented themselves to the Border Patrol. My colleagues, including the gentle chairwoman, have likewise, walked with me or been to the border many times. They have solutions. So regular order now seems to be a straw man.…”