Peters Highlights Bipartisan Legislation to Secure Border in Weekly Democratic Address
“When President Trump says Democrats are against border security and for open borders, he’s lying”

January 11, 2019 by TWN Staff
Peters Highlights Bipartisan Legislation to Secure Border in Weekly Democratic Address
Penitas, Texas is where the border wall with Mexico ends in this part of the Rio Grande Valley, as seen on March 14, 2018. (Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times/TNS)

On Friday, Congressman Scott Peters of California delivered the Weekly Democratic Address. Peters, a centrist member of Congress known for his practical approach to problem solving, represents California’s 52nd congressional district that includes coastal and central portions of the city of San Diego.

At a time when political tensions are at an all time high over the issue of immigration and Trump’s proposed border wall, Peters reminded us that there was, in fact, bipartisan legislation last Congress proposed by Representatives Pete Aguilar of California and Will Hurd of Texas that included significant border security measures.

How soon we all forget. Peters went on to discuss the legislation.

“It would have directed Homeland Security to perform a mile-by-mile assessment of our entire southern border to determine the most practical and effective way to secure it, and to offer Congress a strategy for each section of the border. It might be state-of-the-art technologies to detect tunnels, because even in places where we have a fence, as we do in San Diego, it’s easy to dig tunnels underneath. It might be sensors and radar to spot moving people and objects in any weather or time of day. It might be cameras mounted on drones to surveil places where the terrain is tough to monitor. Or, it might be, a physical barrier, such as a levee or fence if that makes sense in some places.  But if Homeland Security wanted to recommend something as expensive as a wall in a particular place, they’d have to justify the extra expense against other less costly tools.”

“In the last Congress, 193 Congressional Democrats and 23 Republicans acted to force a vote on these smart approaches to border security.  But unfortunately, Republican leadership did not allow a vote on our bipartisan bill, but I bet most Democrats would support these measures in this Congress this year,” he added.

Peters then had a stinging rebuke of the President.

“So, when President Trump says Democrats are against border security and for open borders, he’s lying.”

In giving the address, Peters referenced his work with San Diego’s Congressional delegation, both Republicans and Democrats, to secure $442 million in federal investment to modernize the San Ysidro Port of Entry, the busiest land border crossing in the Western Hemisphere.

Full video and audio of the Weekly Democratic Address can be downloaded here

A+
a-

In The News

Health

Voting

National Security

Back to the Future: NATO Leaders Hark Back to the Cold War as They Meet to Hike Defense Spending

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte was upbeat that the military organization will agree on massive spending... Read More

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte was upbeat that the military organization will agree on massive spending hikes at a “transformational summit” on Wednesday, as member state leaders including U.S. President Donald Trump assembled in the Netherlands. Leaders of the 32-nation alliance are... Read More

The Latest: US Inserts Itself Into Israel-Iran War and Strikes 3 Iranian Nuclear Sites

The U.S. military struck three sites in Iran early Sunday, inserting itself into Israel’s effort to destroy Iran's nuclear program in a... Read More

The U.S. military struck three sites in Iran early Sunday, inserting itself into Israel’s effort to destroy Iran's nuclear program in a risky gambit to weaken a longtime foe. The decision to directly involve the U.S. comes after more than a week of strikes by Israel on Iran... Read More

Appeals Court Lets Trump Keep Control of National Guard Troops Deployed to Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES (AP) — An appeals court on Thursday allowed President Donald Trump to keep control of National Guard troops... Read More

LOS ANGELES (AP) — An appeals court on Thursday allowed President Donald Trump to keep control of National Guard troops he deployed to Los Angeles following protests over immigration raids. The decision halts a ruling from a lower court judge who found Trump acted illegally when... Read More

Protests Intensify in Los Angeles After Trump Deploys Hundreds of National Guard Troops

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Tensions in Los Angeles escalated Sunday as thousands of protesters took to the streets in response... Read More

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Tensions in Los Angeles escalated Sunday as thousands of protesters took to the streets in response to President Donald Trump’s extraordinary deployment of the National Guard, blocking off a major freeway and setting self-driving cars on fire as law enforcement used tear... Read More

May 1, 2025
by Dan McCue
Trump Shuffles Key Players, Sending Waltz to UN, Giving Rubio New Duties

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday announced the first major personnel changes of his still-young administration, apparently sacking his... Read More

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday announced the first major personnel changes of his still-young administration, apparently sacking his national security adviser, Mike Waltz, before nominating him to serve as the nation’s next ambassador to the United Nations. At the same time, the president announced... Read More

Loomer Says ‘More Names’ Are Coming After White House Meeting Leads to Firings

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump fired six National Security Council officials after an Oval Office meeting with far-right activist Laura... Read More

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump fired six National Security Council officials after an Oval Office meeting with far-right activist Laura Loomer on Thursday, and she says she’ll be releasing a list of more individuals she believes shouldn’t be serving in the administration “later today or tomorrow.”... Read More

News From The Well
scroll top