Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I am the son of immigrants and proud to represent the heart of Texas here in the United States Congress. For generations, my family has moved back and forth between Texas and Mexico, Mexico and Texas. People immigrate. Sometimes they are in search of safety, and sometimes it is for economic opportunity, but always for family and a better life.

What folks aren't immigrating for is to bring fentanyl into the country as folks on the other side of the aisle have been talking about time after time after time. In committee it was laid out very clearly that over 90 percent of folks arrested for fentanyl trafficking are U.S. citizens and lawful residents.

That is why this Republican anti-immigrant bill, H.R. 2, is cruel, extreme, and not based on fact. It would destroy the asylum system, cage children and families indefinitely, and make the situation at our border worse.

In fact, this bill would eliminate funding for much of the remaining legal immigration system that we have, leading to chaos, but chaos, unfortunately, is what top Republican officials want. They want the immigration system to stay broken so that they can blame Democrats for it. This is a case of arsonists blaming the firefighters for the flames.

For example, Congressman Castro and I worked with the Biden administration to expedite funding to Texas this month to ensure that migrants can sleep in a safe shelter while they process their immigration case instead of being in a tent on the border. In stark contrast, this Republican bill in front of us today would ban this source for shelters and services.

Immigrants sleeping on the streets of Texas may be a better shot for FOX News cameras, but it is a much worse deal for everyday people.

In Texas we are still mourning those killed by a mass shooter in Allen. We are seeking justice for the kids and the teachers killed in Uvalde. We haven't fixed our electric grid, and people are struggling to pay their rent and their mortgage. We need help from this Congress, but instead we get hate for immigrants. We should be creating an economy that works for everyone--immigrant and native-born.

We should be expanding our freedoms, not ripping away peoples' rights. Let's welcome asylum seekers fleeing violence and catastrophe with a safe and orderly system. Let's create pathways for legal immigration rather than the broken system today that forces people to go around the rules. Let's work toward a safer and more just and more prosperous Western Hemisphere so that we reduce those factors that are pushing mass migration.

Let's look at the role of U.S. sanctions that starve people abroad instead of feeding them. Let's recognize that immigrants are a key part of our past and our present in this country.

Many of our joint faith traditions call for us to care for our neighbors near and far. I remember when my priest told me the story of how the Holy family was persecuted by King Herod and how Jesus, Mary, and Joseph had to flee across the border into Egypt. They had to cross a big river. The priest said that he forgets whether the river was called the Nile or the Rio Grande, but that is beside the point. Today, our story is no different.

Mr. Speaker, I am Greg Casar, and I represent the heart of Texas. I rise today to sound the alarm. Extremist Republicans are using the Texas legislature as a testing ground for their most extreme policies that they plan to spread across the country.

Right now, top Texas officials are considering new laws to, one, create vigilante bounty hunter groups to go after immigrant families; two, defund our public schools; three, bar doctors from providing healthcare to transgender Texans; four, cap how much renewable energy our State can create; five, ban books and drag shows; six, block water breaks for construction workers; seven, ban citizens from Asian countries from attending public college; eight, they have already banned abortion and now they are going after emergency contraception.

This vile blueprint may be the Republicans' plan for our State and our country, but they are not representative of Texas values. Texans take care of our neighbors, look out for each other. Americans want decent healthcare, housing they can afford, and a decent future for their kids.

As public servants, we should lead with love and integrity. After all, Texas is a native word that means friendship, not cruelty. I may yield back my time, but not my efforts.

Mr. Speaker, I am Greg Casar, and I represent the heart of Texas.

Today, thousands of my constituents are freezing without electricity. As Texans try to survive the cold weather and the climate crisis is being ignored in our State, they are also worried about paying for housing. They are worried because they have had their workers' rights stripped away, reproductive rights stripped away, and voting rights stripped away. They are worried that their kid could be shot in school.

These are the concerns of the people. But Republican leadership here is working on none of these issues. Instead, they are trying to redistribute wealth from working-class families to their biggest corporate donors.

But even though Texans may be without electricity today, we are far from powerless. We have a history of organizing for change in Texas.

The same electricians who are getting the lights back on, the same medics caring for our sick, are sick and tired of right-wing extremism. These working families will be the ones to organize and create a true democracy

where the people lead and the politicians follow.

Mark these words as my first here in this Chamber.