VIDEO: U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin Reiterates Call for Clean Homeland Security Funding Bill

WATCH video of Baldwin’s hearing remarks here.

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) attended a hearing of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee entitled, “Deferred Action on Immigration: Implications and Unanswered Questions.” At the hearing, Baldwin acknowledged that the deferred action programs are an important first step in trying to address part of our broken immigration system, but questioned the intentions of the hearing as Senate Republicans try to dismantle the programs altogether this week.  

“…I am frustrated by my colleagues, who have chosen to play politics as we consider the Homeland Security funding bill – putting critical national security programs on the line in order to attack the President’s actions on immigration,” said Baldwin during the hearing. “We’re having this important hearing today, in which we can learn more about making DACA and DAPA work best for our country and our economy, while at the same time the Republican leaders of this chamber are trying to undo those very programs on the Senate floor.”

Yesterday, Senate Republicans attempted to pass a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appropriation funding bill that included extraneous provisions intended to undo President Obama’s executive actions on immigration. A bipartisan majority, including Baldwin, voted against these efforts. Senate Republicans have indicated they will again attempt to bring up and pass the same legislation as early as today.

Baldwin also spoke on the Senate floor yesterday urging her colleagues to take up and pass the clean Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appropriations funding bill (S. 272) that Appropriations Vice Chairwoman Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) introduced last week.

WATCH video of Baldwin’s remarks on the Senate floor here.