Reps. King, Barletta, and Gohmert Voice Opposition to Amnesty

On the floor of the House of Representatives Wednesday night, Reps. Steve King (R-Iowa), Lou Barletta (R-Pa.), and Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) voiced their opposition to the amnesty bills being drafted in both the House and the Senate. The three have been mostly silent, but decided it was time to speak out with news that legislation is likely to be introduced next week.”I come to this floor very troubled here this evening. I am troubled at the current inertia that seems to have been created in the minds and in the positions of a number of people who are here in the House and in the Senate, primarily those on my side of the aisle, who seemed to wake up on the morning of November 7 and decided that Mitt Romney would be President-elect if he just hadn’t said two words, ‘self-deport,'” Rep. King said.”[T]he most essential pillar of American exceptionalism that is affected by this debate over immigration is the rule of law,” he added.Details of the proposed legislation from both the Senate Gang of Eight and a group of House Members  indicate that most of the 11 million illegal aliens in the United States would receive instant legalization and work permits under the legislation. Since the election, the Republican Party believes it was their pro-enforcement position during the elections that caused Mitt Romney to lose the presidency and minor loses in both Chambers of Congress. Post-election data, however, shows that Romney’s enforcement-first position had no bearing on the election.”Our immigration laws were created for two reasons: one, to protect the American people and our national security; and two, to protect American workers,” Rep. Barletta said. “There are 22 million Americans who are out of work. We should not be encouraging millions more to come here illegally when so many Americans cannot find jobs.”Rep. Gohmert focused his time on the floor on border security.”I was shocked that 34.9 percent of all prosecutions by this administration were not for drugs; they were for people reentering this country after they’ve been deported,” Rep. Gohmert said. “I know it goes back to the Bush administration. That is not a defense. And they need to take care of their job–and I hope and pray they will–instead of using the issue of a secure border as ransom. No, we will only secure the border if you will give us amnesty.”For more information, see the Daily Caller.