WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Steven Palazzo (MS-4) released the following statement today after the House passed a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security while fully blocking President Obama’s executive amnesty actions:
“Today’s bill is about taking a stand for America and putting the American people first. Clearly this president is more concerned with meeting the needs of those who came to the United States illegally than the law-abiding, hardworking citizens of our country. Any funding allocated to the Department of Homeland Security should be used to enforce the current laws on the books and to secure our borders.
“Border security is national security. The Constitution charges Congress with the duty to ‘provide for the common defense.’ Therefore securing our borders, by law, should be our top priority. Unlike the president, I will uphold the oath I took as a United States Congressman as I continue to fight his overreaching, unconstitutional actions and work to put the American people first.”
The final passage of the bill included five amendments directly addressing the president’s unilateral immigration actions, including provisions that would prevent any funds from being used to implement the president’s November order granting amnesty to nearly 5 million illegal immigrants. It also blocks the President’s earlier Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) order. Language was also included to call on the president to stop putting the needs of illegal immigrants before those of law-abiding individuals.
###
Palazzo is a Marine veteran of the Persian Gulf War and currently serves as a noncommissioned officer in the Mississippi National Guard. The Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States awarded Palazzo with the G.V. “Sonny” Montgomery Eagle Award for his work on the House Armed Services Committee. He is also a member of the Homeland Security Committee, and the Science, Space, and Technology Committee where he serves as Chairman of the Space Subcommittee
