Jan. 12, 2019
It’s a new year and a new Congress. Last week, I was sworn in for another term as the Congressman for Missouri’s 6th District. It is an absolute honor to represent North Missouri and one that I don’t take lightly.
We have a lot of work ahead of us.
The first order of business is to ensure that we secure our border and build the wall. The humanitarian and national security crisis at our southern border is only getting worse. Without a secure border, illegal immigration, gang violence, crime, drugs, and human trafficking will continue unimpeded.
According to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), they’ve arrested approximately 235,000 illegal aliens on various criminal charges or convictions in the United States—including roughly 100,000 for assault, 30,000 for sex crimes, and 4,000 for homicides.…in the last two years alone!
In addition to the violent crime, the drug problem is America is magnified because of the border crisis. Most of the heroin that is killing our friends, family members and neighbors is coming across the southern border.
Let’s not forget the fact that illegal is still just that…illegal. If you don’t come to this country legally, you shouldn’t be here. We should be diligent in ensuring that people aren’t able to come across the border illegally.
This is just common-sense. We owe it to our citizens, our Border Patrol agents and the nation to build the wall and secure the border. This isn’t a new concept; in fact, it’s one that I’ve always supported.
That’s why I voted at the end of December to build the wall and fully fund the government. Quite simply, the border shouldn’t be open, and the government shouldn’t be closed. Considering the magnitude of this crisis, the President is asking for a modest amount of funding for border security and there’s no reason to not approve it.
In order to ensure the sovereignty and safety of our nation, we must secure the border now. It’s time to build the wall.
Securing our border is just one of what I know will be many challenges in 2019. However, it’s critical that we face these challenges head on. I look forward to the year ahead and doing what’s best for North Missouri.
