Pete King

Mr. KING of New York

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to H.R. 5092 the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATFE). We have been granted the right to bear arms; however, this right is granted to those who can operate safely and responsibly within the auspices of the law. Those who cannot operate within the law should not be given greater opportunities to obtain weapons. Rather than address this problem, this legislation actually weakens our current law, and makes it easier for dangerous weapons to get into the hands of criminals. Instead of weakening current law, we should be giving law enforcement better tools to combat gun trafficking. According to a 2000 ATF report, corrupt gun dealers are the number one source of illegal firearm trafficking. With that information, we should be working to impose tighter measures and better law enforcement, so that we can protect innocent Americans who often fall victim to crimes caused by firearm abuse. Instead, H.R. 5092 does just the opposite by sympathizing with the gun dealer and adding obstacles to law enforcement. Under current law, the ATF can punish gun dealers for illegal gun sales. H.R. 5092 makes punishment more difficult. In addition, this bill would prohibit the ATF from considering large amounts of ``lost'' firearms as a violation of law. It is this same type of ``lost inventory'' that armed the DC sniper. It is important that we give our law enforcement agents the proper tools to end gun trafficking, not make it more difficult. It is unthinkable to me to support any type of legislation that favors the rights of criminals over the protection of our friends and family. Finally, I would like to commend Mayor Mike Bloomberg for his dedication to this issue and his opposition to this legislation. I also oppose H.R. 5092, and I encourage my colleagues to do the same.

Mr. KING of New York

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, like my colleagues, I am very proud to stand today in support of H.R. 5664. I was very proud to introduce the resolution. And I want to thank Mr. Israel, my colleague from New York, for the strong support that he has given me on this resolution and also for the strong support that he has given to the Kenney and Fletcher families. Mr. Speaker, it has been discussed what Jacob Fletcher achieved during his life, what he achieved in his death. And he was an exceptional, exceptional human being and a young man. As was stated, he grew up in Long Island, but he dreamed about joining the military even as a young boy. In fact, the story, it is a true story, that he actually submitted an application to join the Army when he was only 8 years old. And his mother had to explain and turn away the enlistment officers when they came to the house that Jacob was too young to join the Army. She had a tougher job of actually explaining it to Jacob that he was too young to join the Army. But his patriotic passion cannot be extinguished, and after the September 11 attacks against our country which killed so many New Yorkers and so many Americans and also claimed a family friend, Jacob joined the Army and fulfilled his life-long calling to serve his Nation. Jacob came from a military family. His father, his stepfather served in the Armed Forces during the Vietnam War, and Jacob's grandfather was a veteran as well. As Congressman Israel and Ms. Foxx mentioned, Jacob completed his basic training and his airborne school at Fort Benning, and he was among the very first Americans to land in Iraq, parachuting under the cover of darkness during the first week of the war. During his time in Iraq, Jacob and his fellow soldiers spent much of their time in Iraq training police officers. And in conversations with his family, he spoke of how much he wanted to help these people as this was his calling. He very clearly felt that this was the right thing to do. Unfortunately Jacob's life ended tragically before he could return home and before he could fulfill all of his dreams. On November 13, 2003, a roadside bomb exploded near the convoy he was in near the town of Samarra, and he died the next day, November 14. He was just 28 years young. He was awarded a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star, and he was also posthumously promoted to specialist. Like Congressman Israel, I have had the privilege of working with his mother Dorrine, who, again, rather than curse the darkness, has done so much to help those who are in combat in Iraq, in Afghanistan, throughout the world. She has brought Brownies to my office, Girl Scouts. She is active on so many different issues involving the welfare of our solders. I admire her for having the strength that she does. Congressman Israel and I were at a recent 9/11 commemoration at Farmingdale University. She was there at that, Dorrine was there. So she again has done so much in memory of her son. Similarly, I have the privilege of having his father, Mo Fletcher, reside in my district. Mr. Fletcher is a Vietnam veteran. He is also a very courageous man who gives so much of his time to veterans, to the military. Whenever a soldier is killed in combat who is from Long Island and adjoining areas, Mo Fletcher goes to the wake, goes to the funeral, stays with the family. So he is a very, very decent human being. And you can see why Jacob turned out to be the outstanding man that he was. In addition, Jacob is survived by his stepfather, his sister Tara, and his brothers Scott and Josh. I just urge all the Members of this body to really cast their vote for a true American hero, Jacob Fletcher, who gave his life so that all of us could be free, and may he rest in peace, and, again, may God bless him and his entire family.

Mr. KING of New York

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 3 minutes to the distinguished majority whip, the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Blunt).

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the motion to recommit.

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 6061.

Mr. KING of New York. If I could reclaim my time, I do believe that it is significant that in a fence act, even though fencing was mentioned in December legislation passed in the House, even though fencing was mentioned in the Senate bill, there is no reference to it, which to me is bowing to political correctness. We are up front about what we are asking for. Also, I don't believe we should abdicate responsibility to the Department of Homeland Security. We should make it clear what we want, tell them what we want. If they want some variations within there, fine. But we feel so strongly about this, the American people feel so strongly about it, I believe it is essential that we make it loud and clear what we do want. Now, having said that, on the issue, for instance, of Border Patrol agents, the appropriations bill for fiscal year 2007 will include 1,200 new Border Patrol agents. That will get us up to 14,580, an increase of almost 50 percent over the last several years. There are 1,012 new ICE officers, which will get us up to 11,500. This appears to be about as many as the system can absorb as we train new officers, and we are going forward with that. If more are needed, I pledge to the ranking member we will work to bring that about as we go into the next session. But it is essential that we do this today to tell the American people that we have gotten the message, that we are willing to take the action that is needed, we are willing to go on the line this is needed, this is essential; and we are calling for it, we are demanding it, we are voting for it. The easiest way to say that we are going to do the right thing on illegal immigration, to stop illegal immigration, and also to be humane and stop the deaths in the desert. I was at the desert with Speaker Hastert and Congressman Rush and Congresswoman Miller this past July, went to Yuma and Nogales in Arizona, we helicoptered across the desert. To me, a fence is absolutely essential in certain parts of that border. That is what this is about. Let's put aside political correctness, let's have the guts to do the right thing. I urge defeat of the Democratic motion to recommit and passage of the underlying bill, H.R. 6061. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn).

Mr. KING of New York. I thank the gentleman. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe).

Mr. KING of New York. Could I inquire of my friend from Mississippi if he intends to use all his time with more speakers?

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the real gentleman from Iowa and the real Mr. King.

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, could I inquire how much time both sides have?

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Price).

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. At the outset let me commend and thank my friend Mr. Thompson from Mississippi both for, I believe, the high quality of debate certainly on his side and hopefully on our side today and also for the cooperation that he has given throughout the time that I have been chairman over the last year as chairman of the Homeland Security Committee. Mr. Speaker, there is no issue that is more on the minds of the American people than illegal immigration, and there is one part of the bill that we passed last December which has overwhelming support, and that is the construction of a fence along significant parts of the southern border, operational control of the balance of the border, and also to give Border Patrol agents the authority to stop vehicles, to use force to stop vehicles. But, again, the key part of this is operational control and significant control, including the use of a fence along the southern border. We can tell the American people we have heard the message. We can tell the American people that we are willing to put aside political correctness and do the right thing. It is legislation that is humane because it will save lives. It is legislation that will work as it was done in San Diego. It is legislation which would tell the American people that we are serious about combating illegal immigration. And rather than wait for everything, we will do what we can and we will just step up to the plate and get it done. With that, I urge passage of H.R. 6061.

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Tancredo).

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from West Virginia (Mrs. Capito).

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I would say to my good friend from California, all of us agree no one provision is going to solve illegal immigration, but this is a significant provision going forward. In addition, this year's appropriation bill provides for 1,200 new Border Patrol agents which will bring us up to 14,580, an increase of over 80 percent since September 11, 2001, and over 1,200 ICE officers. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goode).

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I would just remind my good friend from Texas that just a 14-mile fence in San Diego has brought about a significant decrease in crime. And also one of the reasons why we believe this fence is essential is for the humanitarian reason of not allowing so many people to die in the desert the way they do today because there is no fence. Mr. Speaker, I am privileged to yield 3 minutes to the distinguished chairman of the Rules Committee, the gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier). (Mr. DREIER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I would just make several references, one to my good friend, the gentleman from Mississippi, who is ranking member and does such an outstanding job on the Homeland Security Committee, that I don't think it is ever a waste of taxpayer dollars to go out and hold hearings and listen to what the American people have to say. Sometimes it is good to get away from just reading editorials in the New York Times and the Washington Post and actually hear what real people have to say. Secondly, if we are going to show that we are genuinely against doing nothing, then let's do something and pass legislation which we know the overwhelming majority of the American people want, and that is to build this fence. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Hayworth).

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 6061, the Secure Fence Act of 2006. Mr. Speaker, as Members of Congress return to their districts, as Members of Congress speak with the American people, it is obvious there is no more defining issue in our Nation today than stopping illegal immigration. This is an issue which is absolutely essential if we are to gain the confidence of the American people, if we are going to show to the American people that we can perform the most basic obligation of any government, and that is to secure the Nation's borders. Now, we passed very comprehensive legislation in December of last year, H.R. 4437, and I was a strong advocate and cosponsor of that, along with Chairman Sensenbrenner, but the reality is that legislation is right now bogged down. What we have to do is we have to prove to the American people and also we have to make substantial progress in combating illegal immigration. One issue in which there appears to be a consensus between the United States Senate and the Congress is on the issue of building a secure fence. So rather than wait, and wait for God knows how long until comprehensive legislation is enacted, there is no reason whatsoever why we should not move forward on targeted legislation which is effective and meaningful. We have to bridge this disconnect between the American people and its government, between the American people and the elite, and we have to show we are responsive. Now, the legislation today incorporates very much what was already passed by the House with significant Democratic votes back in December. It provides over 700 miles of two-layered reinforced fencing. It also mandates that the Department of Homeland Security achieve and maintain operational control over the entire border through a virtual fence, deploying cameras, ground sensors, unmanned aerial vehicles, integrated surveillance technology, and it also requires the Department of Homeland Security to provide the necessary authority to border personnel to disable fleeing vehicles, similar to the authority which is already held by the United States Coast Guard for maritime vessels. We also realize there is concern at the northern border, and I want to especially thank my colleague from New York (Congressman Reynolds) for his efforts in homeland security, particularly on the northern border. With his help, we were able to enhance the Secure Fence Act to ensure that appropriate technology and infrastructure are being considered and that border security efforts are implemented in a manner that does not stop or deny commerce. Mr. Speaker, this is an issue where the American people are crying out for help. They are crying out for us to take meaningful action. There is, to me, no reason why, and I am trying to anticipate arguments coming against it, basically saying we need comprehensive legislation, and that is a debate we can have. We passed comprehensive legislation in December. But the fact is just because we cannot do everything today doesn't mean that we should do nothing. So I am saying let us do something very, very positive. Let us pass this legislation, which will build a secure fence, which will build a virtual fence, and would also give the border personnel the assistance and the power that they need. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1002, I call up the bill (H.R. 6061) to establish operational control over the international land and maritime borders of the United States, and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. KING of New York. I yield to the gentleman from Texas.

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter), who is the author of the original amendment on the wall.

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Florida, a member of the committee, Ms. Ginny Brown-Waite.

Mr. KING of New York

Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas for yielding, and I rise in strong support of H.R. 6061. H.R. 6061, to me, addresses the most direct need of the American people, and that is to show that we can take meaningful action to secure our border. I have never seen more of a disconnect between the American people and the elite in Washington, between the American people and the American media, because overwhelmingly the American people want us to secure the border. They want us to show that we can fulfill the most basic requirement of a government, and that is to ensure the sanctity and the security of our borders. Now, we did pass comprehensive legislation last December by a large vote, including almost 40 Democrats, H.R. 4437, and I strongly stand by that. The fact is that right now is not moving as quickly as we would like it to, and, therefore, rather than saying we are going to wait until everything can be done before we do anything, I am saying, let's pick areas where there has been agreement. The Senate has agreed to have a 370-mile fence along the border. We now have a 700-mile fence. This is something which clearly can be done. It will work. Is it the entire fence? Absolutely not. More has to be done. But, in the meantime, let's show progress. Let's get this done. Let's show the American people that we have listened to what they have said and we are going to do what they want. Then we can deal in a comprehensive way, we can go issue by issue, we can go item by item, but let's focus on what we know will work. And this will work. You add this fence, in addition to the new Border Patrol agents which are in the FY07 bills which are going to result in a 40 percent increase since 2001, and we hope to double that by 2008. Also the idea of having a fence, it can also allow better reallocation of Border Patrol agents because the fence will serve a security purpose which can actually allow Border Patrol agents to expand their own focus more. So, with that, Mr. Speaker, I just strongly urge the adoption of this. The American people are watching. The American people have spoken loudly and clearly. We have responded to that in a responsible, effective way. And for the life of me, I don't know why people on the other side are saying, just because we can't do everything, we should do nothing. Doing nothing is the worst thing Congress can do, and that is why we are doing something very meaningful. I urge its adoption.