Senate Committee Considering Saldanas Nomination To Serve As ICE Director
Texas Insider Report: WASHINGTON DCU.S. Sen. John Cornyn R-Texas today introduced Sarah R. Saldana U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee as the committee considers her nomination to serve as Assistant Secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Excerpts of his introduction are below and the full video of his remarks can be found
here.
Ms. Saldana is a native of Corpus Christi Texas she learned from a young age the importance of hard work and education. She was one of seven children born to working-class parents. She watched her mother study to become a nurse and work nights to provide for the family. In turn she studied hard in school and told herself What you think you can do you can do. And certainly Ms. Saldana has accomplished great things.
In 2011 Ms. Saldana became the first Latina United States Attorney in Texas history and only the second woman to hold that position in the 135-year history of Texas Northern Districta region that includes the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and spans 100 counties and stretches across 95000 square miles.
In her role as U.S. Attorney and prosecutor over the past decade Ms. Saldana has served our state with honorfighting corrupt public officials organized crime sex traffickers and other dangerous criminals. Throughout her career Ms. Saldana has developed a reputation for her decisive and fair temperament and her commitment to excellence.
The most difficult question facing the next leader of ICE is how they will respond to President Obamas upcoming actions on immigration enforcement.
As we all know the President has announced that after the November elections he will unilaterally issue a series of executive orders that attempt to change our nations immigration laws without the consent of Congress. I believe such actions would violate our Constitution and the laws of the land.
This gives the impressions that we will not enforce our laws which indeed contributes to the magnet of illegal immigration. We need to fix our broken immigration system but we need to eliminate illegal immigration and accommodate our current immigration laws in a way that reflects our values and reflects our interests as a nation.
I am concerned about the implications of the Presidents stated intentions. I am also concerned about what that means in terms of Ms. Saldanas opportunity to be successful in the job to which she has been nominated and which I expect she will be confirmed.
Although she is tough she is smart and fiercely independent as a prosecutorshe has demonstrated thatI am concerned that if she is confirmed her voice will be silenced or undermined by these unilateral actions that the President has said that he intends to take.
So I look forward to hearing Ms. Saldanas responses to the Committees questions and helping members of the Senate make an informed decision about this important nomination."
Sen. Cornyn ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Refugees and Border Security has joined Sen. Charles Grassley Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee in requesting sequential referral of Sarah Saldanas nomination to the Senate Judiciary Committee to allow committee members to question the nominee. Sens. Grassley and Cornyn wrote to Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy D-VT this week requesting his assistance in gaining this referral given the Judiciary Committees jurisdiction over immigration matters.
Senator Cornyn serves on the Finance and Judiciary Committees. He serves as the top Republican on the Judiciary Committees Immigration Refugees and Border Security subcommittee. He served previously as Texas Attorney General Texas Supreme Court Justice and Bexar County District Judge.
