Florida Republicans continue to be amongst the most vocal advocates in support of border security. Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) spoke on the Senate floor in favor of Sen. Joni Ernst's (R-IA) BUILD Act, which would allow states to request material with which to build a border wall, and the federal government must oblige. Senate Democrats, however, block the Act.
Sen. Scott's press release notes that since Biden's halting of border wall construction, nearly a quarter-billion dollars worth of material is simply sitting there. More alarmingly, Scott says that "the federal government began paying contractors over $3 million a day to look over unused border material."
Yes, you read that correctly.
Additionally, Scott describes how many families attempting to cross the border illegally are indebted to cartels. He states that "once in America, many of them live a life of indentured servitude and debilitating debt" and of how many women and children are severely victimized in this dangerous journey. To the cartels, however, "it’s all money to them."
With Title 42 potentially expiring, these incidents will only worsen as thousands more attempt to cross the border. "We are hearing reports that up to 18,000 people a day will be illegally storming across our border EVERY DAY once Title 42 is lifted," says Scott. He points out that President Obama called 1,000 border crossings per day a "crisis," so what do you call 18,000? Scott answers that "it’s his [Biden's] call to make…he created this disaster."
Finally, Scott rails against Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas. Calling to mind Mayorkas' testimony that the border is secure, Scott disparagingly says that "he might be the only person in America that actually believes" it. To this, Scott says, "REALLY? LOOK AT EL PASO!"
Scott concludes his speech by saying that "our Democrat colleagues do not have the luxury of ignoring this crisis any longer" and that "American families cannot take this loss and heartbreak due to incompetence in Washington any longer."
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL-19) recently pushed the idea of shutting down the federal government.
