I want to thank the witnesses for taking the time for your thoughtful testimony. I want to thank the audience members. Im not sure why you are not over on the house side. It must be paid staff. I appreciate everyone coming here. The hearing title is unprecedented migration at the southern border, the year in review. I would like to start with the decade in review. I refer everybody to my chart. This is a chart i have been updating for the last 34 years. As long as you have been on the committee. It is important to lay out what the history has been. Certainly from my standpoint. Some key policy changes. I would argue they contributed to what i consider an ongoing crisis even though we have made some process progress. That chart reflects all minors and people coming to this country as family units. Earlier versions only focused on Central American children and family members. Initially, we had 3000, 4000 unaccompanied children. We werent even keeping track of families because it wasnt a
[inaudible conversations] this hearing will come to order. I want to first thank the witnesses for taking the time for your thoughtful testimony. I want to thank the audience members. We appreciate. It must have been paid m staff. I appreciate everybody coming here. This is from my standpoint during title this unprecedented migration of the u. S. Southern border the year in review. But i would like to do this start with the decade in review. I would refer everybody to my chart. This is a chart that ive been really updating for probably the last three or four years as long as youve been on the committee. I think its important to kind of layout for the history has been from my standpoint some key moments, key policy changes that i would certainly argue contributed to what i consider an ongoing crisisn even though weve made some progress. The chart reflects all the miners and people coming to the country as family units. Earlier versions only focused on Central American children and famil
This hearing will come to order i would first say the witnesses for taking the time for your thoughtful testimony and how i say the audience members. Im not sure why youe are not e house i but we really apprecia appreciate, you must been paid staff. But i appreciate everybody coming here. This is from my standpoint, the hearing title is an president migration at the southern border being in review. But what id like to do is to actually start with a decade in review. For everybody to iconic, is the chart that i have been really updating are probably the last three or four years. As you can on the committee. Important to lay out what the history news men. Key moments and policy changes, then i would certainly argue contributed to what you consider an ongoing prices even though they made some progress. But that chart reflects all minors and people coming to this country as family units. Earlier versions only focused on sinful market children and family members. So initially, and 2009 to 1
To the bottom get of the campaign to deport critically ill children and their families. It appears this policy has thankfully been reversed after congress and the American People outcry at the cold inhumanity on display in this policy. I am going to treat this hearing is not only an honor of the memory of our late beloved chairman, elijah cummings, but as a hearing indirect pursuit of a policy directive that was close to his heart, the threatened deportation of Sick Children that his very last official act before his death was to issue subpoenas to hold the administration to account. On wednesday, in the waning hours of his life through all pain and difficulty, chairman cummings recognized the stain this policy would leave on our nation, and he made holding the government accountable his final official act. And we now have a sacred obligation to follow through on his subpoenas to make sure that we defend some of the most Vulnerable People on the planet, Sick Children who have come as s
In the field. This is live coverage on cspan2. For being here. I also thank you, we have the administration here today, especially our ambassador at large, cindy dire, thank you for being here as well. You know, more than 20 years ago, Congress Approved and president signed historic legislation that i authored known as Trafficking Victims protection act of 2000. This bipartisan landmark law created a comprehensive whole of Government Initiative that combat sex and labor trafficking in the United States and around the world. It also established dozens and dozens of new programs to protect victims, prosecute traffickers and prevent Human Trafficking in the first place, the three ps. Looking at the progress made over the years, its hard to believe the Trafficking Victims protection act was met with a serious opposition, a wall of opposition, for those in such of a problem including the media, many exaggerating, that we were talking about the prevalence of this crime not only around the wo