Prepared Statement by Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa
Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee
Executive Business Meeting
July 30, 2015
On the agenda today is S. 1814, a bill by Senator Vitter that deals with sanctuary policies. Last week, this committee heard from a number of relatives who lost loved ones because of illegal immigration.
And this week, more American families suffer. On Monday, an undocumented immigrant in Cleveland allegedly tried to rape a 14 year old girl, shot a 40-year old woman in the shoulder while she was walking in a park, and then entered a home and shot and killed a 60-year old woman. He had come to the attention of law enforcement prior to this, but apparently, the federal government allowed him to be released.
We need to make sure no more families suffer, and send a signal to state and local jurisdictions that they simply cannot harbor criminal aliens any longer. We need to improve cooperation between the federal government and state and local law enforcement communities.
Our side has proposed a number of solutions, and I hope my colleagues on the other side of the aisle will understand the importance of legislation that shows we’re serious about sanctuary policies.
We’ll hold over S. 1814, but victims’ relatives deserve action and not excuses.
The other bill on the agenda is the Transnational Drug Trafficking Act of 2015. This is a bill that Senator Feinstein and I have worked on together for many years.
It would help the Department of Justice crack down on foreign traffickers who poison our communities from beyond our borders with drugs like heroin, meth, and cocaine. It’s strongly supported by the Department, and passed the Senate by unanimous consent twice. It will be held over.
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