Leader Scalise at Stakeout Talks National Police Week, the Border, and the Debt Ceiling

Press Release

Today, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) joined House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), Republican Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) and Congressman Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) to show House Republicans' support of police and law enforcement officers during National Police Week. Leader Scalise urged Americans to thank law enforcement officers for their service and remember those who died in the line of service. Leader Scalise expressed concern over the increasingly anti-police attitudes present in the Democrat Party. Leader Scalise also slammed the Biden Administration for failing to address the crisis at the southern border, which imperils American communities and places law enforcement officers in increased danger. Additionally, Leader Scalise criticized President Biden and Congressional Democrats for waiting until the midnight hour to negotiate on raising the debt ceiling, and noted House Republicans are the only ones who have passed a bill to avert this looming crisis.

Click here or on the image above to view Leader Scalise's remarks.

Leader Scalise's remarks:

"As we all celebrate National Police Week, we're bringing a number of bills to the Floor this week to back our men and women in law enforcement who keep our communities safe. Who keep us safe. I know that, every day, I pay tribute to them. Every day, I pray for our men and women in law enforcement -- that they're able not only to do their job safely, but able to return home to their famil[ies] safely each evening.

"Unfortunately, not all do. Last night, we had a piece of legislation on the Floor to pay tribute to the more than 200 law enforcement officers who were killed in the line of duty last year. And again, the first step of a number of pieces of legislation, but it is alarming that multiple Democrats voted against that piece of legislation to pay tribute to law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty. Why the Democratic Party has moved more and more towards this anti-cop, Defund The Police movement is perplexing. I think most Americans have been shocked by the way that they've embraced this radical idea, but we're going to continue to stand up for those men and women in law enforcement who keep our community safe, and I embrace and hope all others embrace the great work that they do and reward them and thank them for what they do.

"Anybody who's watching: if you see a cop, thank those men and women in uniform for what they do to keep our communities safe.

"We also are very alarmed by this dramatically increased flow of people coming across our border illegally. We warned this was going to happen. We were encouraging the Biden Administration -- for over a year-and-a-half -- to get control of the open border. All we've gotten is denial and lies from the Administration. Just last week, the Secretary of Homeland Security actually said the border is not open -- the same day that over 13,000 people came across our border illegally. If that is not an open border to Secretary Mayorkas, I would hate to hear the answer of what he considers an open border.

"You saw the same thing from other people in the Biden Administration. They think if they just ignore this problem [and] mislead the public about this problem, that it'll go away. It's not going away. It's only getting worse. One of the bills that we're bringing to the Floor this week by Congressman Garbarino says that, if somebody attacks a law enforcement officer, who is here illegally, that would be a deportable offense.

"We just saw the disgrace -- as [Congressman] Lawler talked about -- that the Biden Administration actually prioritized people that are here illegally over military veterans. I did not hear a peep from anybody in the Biden Administration when those reports started coming out -- and then were confirmed -- that in some case[s], American taxpayer dollars were used to kick veterans out of a hotel to replace them with people here illegally. If Americans knew their tax dollars were going to that, and this President says he can't find any savings, I'll tell you one of the first areas of savings we should find is say, "No more dollars will be used to kick homeless veterans out of a hotel to replace them with people here illegally.'

"People are seeing this. People are angered by it. They watched multiple people on the terrorist watch list get caught last week coming across our border illegally. Those are just the ones that we got -- that we caught. Just how many others have come across who are on the terrorist watch list? People coming to do us harm. People bringing drugs like fentanyl. Today, again, another 300 young people will die from fentanyl and other drug overdoses because of the illegal drugs coming over our open southern border. This has to end.

"We're going to continue, as we did last week, to take action to secure America's border. It's long past-time the President join us in doing this.

"We -- just yesterday -- saw the Durham report. There were a number of alarming items that were included in that report. I know Chairman Jordan is going to continue to have more oversight on this, but think about this quote from the Durham report: "The FBI failed to uphold their mission of strict fidelity to the law.' They actually identified an FBI agent who knowingly made misrepresentations to the FISA court to spy on an American citizen. Where's the accountability for this? Who was being held accountable? These are the questions that we're going to continue to ask.

"And then finally, as the debt ceiling conversations -- I'm not even sure if they're negotiations -- continue. The House, [as] has been pointed out many times, is the only body that's actually acted to address the debt ceiling.

"We took action -- to address not only the debt ceiling -- but the spending problem that got us here in the first place. We have a number of items in that package that show the President [and] the Senate how we can fix the problem that keeps bringing us to this brink where the credit card of the nation gets maxed out. And there's potential default that President Biden flirts with, because he went into hiding for about 100 days refusing to negotiate. In that meeting today, the President needs to come with very specific ideas if he doesn't support our bill. He should just come and say, "You know what, the House actually came together and passed a bill to solve the problem.' And he supports that. The Senate should take action too, which they fail to do. And they're really good at criticizing other people, [but] I've yet to see them take action.

"It's time for all the talk to end -- and actual ideas like we did -- pass, be put on the table by the President."

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