June 27, 2018

Today Representative Dina Titus of Nevada’s First Congressional District released the following statement on the vote on H.R. 6136, the so-called “Border Security and Immigration Reform Act”:

“The President Trump/Speaker Ryan Anti-Immigration Bill failed as miserably as the Republican leadership has on nearly every issue facing the nation,” said Representative Titus. “It just shows how inept and unserious the Republican Party is at finding solutions to end their child separation policy and protect our DREAMers. This should come as no surprise since this Republican President paints immigrants as “animals” who “infest” our country. Congressional Republicans should realize that using DREAMers as a bargaining chip to fund the President’s ineffective and unnecessary border wall, while standing silently by as he overruns the Constitution with his xenophobic immigration policies, results in nothing but failure. 

“I have joined my fellow Democrats on numerous pieces of legislation that can be brought to the floor today to protect our DREAMers (H.R. 3440), end the President’s hateful family separation policy (H.R. 6135), and ensure that the more than 2,000 children taken from their parents and shipped across the country can be cared for and reunited with their loved ones (H.R. 5950, H.R. 5414). Why won’t the Republican Leadership bring these bills to the floor for a vote?” 

H.R. 6126 failed by a vote of 301-121 and was opposed by every member of the House Democratic Caucus. 

Congresswoman Titus’s Recent Actions on Immigration:

• Cosponsor of H.Res. 927 along with 179 other Members of Congress to condemn President Trump’s “zero-tolerance” policy.

• Original cosponsor of H.R. 6135, the Keep Families Together Act that prohibits family separation by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), requires our government to develop policies and procedures to allow parents and children to locate each other and reunite, and makes clear that family unity is paramount in our nation’s immigration policy.

• Cosponsor of H.R. 5950, the HELP Separated Children Act and H.R. 5414, the Help Separated Families Act, two bills that would strengthen protections for children whose parents are detained so that parents can stay in touch with their children and arrange for their care before they are taken into custody, and to reduce barriers to keeping children united with family members.

• Signed a letter to the Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee asking that no money in the DHS FY2019 appropriations bill be used to separate families. The letter also encourages investments in non-detention alternatives. 

• Signed a letter to the Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee asking that no money in the DHS FY2019 appropriations bill be used to deport DREAMers.

• Signed a letter to the Appropriations Committee Chairman and Ranking Member, asking that no money in the relevant appropriations bills be used for family separation.

• Signed a letter to DHS and the Department of Health and Human Services asking what the agencies are doing to protect unaccompanied children from abduction and exploitation.

• Signed a letter to DHS and HHS regarding the wellbeing and whereabouts of separated girls.

• Signed a letter to DHS and HHS regarding the agencies’ family reunification efforts.

• Signed a letter to the DHS and HHS Inspectors General asking for an investigation into each agency’s recordkeeping of separated families.

• Signed a letter to DHS and HHS to demand a full accounting of how much taxpayer money the Trump Administration is spending to separate families and implement President Trump’s June 20, 2018 Executive Order.

• Signed a letter to HHS seeking information regarding allegations of mistreatment of children in government shelters and facilities.

• Signed a letter requesting that the government agencies involved in the separation of families give Members of Congress a sit-down meeting to explain the agencies’ plans to reunite families.

• Signed the “queen-of-the-hill” rule discharge petition to bring four immigration bills to the House floor for a vote, including the DREAM Act.

• Cosponsor of H.R. 3923, the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act which would end mandatory detention, increase accountability in civil detention standards, and require the government to pursue alternatives to detention programs.