McHenry Pushes for Secure Borders

Tenth District Congressman Applauds Defeat of Senate Amnesty Bill – Stresses Need to Stop Illegal Immigration

Hickory, Jul 12, 2007 -

Congressman Patrick McHenry called the U.S. Senate’s recent immigration bill “a thinly veiled amnesty plan” and was relieved to see its defeat. The Congressman stated, “Anything that was spearheaded by Ted Kennedy could never have been a good thing and that was definitely the case with the Senate’s amnesty plan.”

McHenry continued to stress the need for real border security and legislation to solve America’s illegal immigration problem. “North Carolina taxpayers foot the bill for the healthcare, education and incarceration costs of illegal aliens to the tune of nearly $1 billion per year!” remarked Congressman McHenry. “Discussing guest worker programs or anything else is absolutely useless until we secure our borders and stop the flow of illegal aliens into the country. This is an issue of national security and economic security.”

The Congressman noted that North Carolina has seen several high-profile, tragic instances in recent years where illegal immigrants with extensive records of drunk driving have killed North Carolina citizens in car crashes. The most recent case occurred earlier this year in Landis, NC.

Congressman McHenry has been a leader in the U.S. House on the issue of border security. He has cosponsored several pieces of legislation including the Secure Fence Act and the Real ID Act – both of which were signed into law. The Congressman has also cosponsored a bill that would deny Social Security benefits to any illegal alien.

“My constituents have made their thoughts on this issue very clear – they are sick and tired of Washington politicians doing nothing about the massive influx of illegal aliens into this country,” McHenry emphasized. “The time for action is now – we don’t need amnesty, we need border security and we must enforce the laws of our land. If you break our laws to come to America, you’re not going to respect our laws once you’re here.”