Patrick Leahy: “I am glad to hear the distinguished Senator, my colleague and friend, speak about the problems on the southern border. I…”

“I am glad to hear the distinguished Senator, my colleague and friend, speak about the problems on the southern border. I feel for President Biden because he inherited a horrible mess from his predecessor, a man who said that he would build a wall, which he didn't--a wall that would stop illegal immigration, which it didn't-- and that he would build it, saying he would get the money from Mexico, knowing that he would not get 1 cent from Mexico, but he repeated that falsehood hundreds of times around this country. He also actually took money away from housing for families on our military bases, from families living in substandard housing. It was money that Congress had voted for to repair the housing to make it safe, to remove lead, mold, and so on. He took that money to build a wall that he claimed, as I said, Mexico would pay for. When I was the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, we passed by about a 2-to-1 margin, after months and months and months of debate and work, an immigration bill here in the Senate. Republicans and Democrats voted for it, and it certainly could have solved all of these problems. When it went over to the House of Representatives, there were enough votes to pass it there, but it would not be with a majority of the Republicans.…”