From Former Quigley Supporter:

Lauren Underwood Update 8/13/19

This past Sunday, August 11, the congressional delegation led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to tour the Northern Triangle countries of Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras ended its trip by visiting facilities around McAllen, TX, and included an early afternoon press conference at the Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley.

The press conference was recorded on video and is posted at KGBT-TV’s website (video is halfway down the page):  https://valleycentral.com/news/local/watch-live-house-speaker-pelosi-hosting-press-conference-on-recent-delegation-tour

“Madame Speaker, do the recent ICE raids in Mississippi…they seem like politics heading into the 2020 election at this point?”
After responses from Speaker Pelosi, Congressman Henry Cuellar, Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard, and the Speaker again, Congresswoman Underwood addressed the question:

About 42 seconds into the press conference video, the following question was asked (from what I could hear, given the audio quality): 

 “Madame Speaker, do the recent ICE raids in Mississippi…they seem like politics heading into the 2020 election at this point?”

“Thank you so much. 

“I want to be clear that we do believe in border security.  And we believe in enforcement of our laws. 

“However, what your question goes to is the cruelty, and the perception that that cruelty and the policy is being used for political purposes. 

“And that is unacceptable. 

“Secretary McAleenan, the acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security mentioned that the timing was quote, ‘unfortunate’. 

“I would say so, sir. 

“And so, we would hope that DHS, when in executing these border security policies, take in mind the core American values that should undergird all of our actions, as policy makers.”

It must be pointed out that acting Secretary McAleenan’s statement about the “unfortunate” timing he said on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday had to do within a week of the El Paso shootings, and took place on the day of President Trump’s visit to El Paso.

The “core American values” Underwood mentions includes submission to obeying the laws of the United States, and if you are here illegally and working for a business as an undocumented immigrant, you are subject to arrest no matter how many children are at home.

And the DHS was not just executing border security policies, DHS was executing legal court orders that were the result of months of planning.

On Sunday POLITICO covered the Administration’s approach to last week’s ICE raids (https://www.politico.com/story/2019/08/11/trump-immigration-raids-mississippi-1457761) noting the businesses, including Park Ridge-based Koch Brothers, will face charges.  

Underwood’s response appears like she’s heading for another showdown with acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan.

Please recall, her last public confrontation with McAleenan did not go well for Underwood, at May 22nd’s House Homeland Security Committee meeting, where Underwood’s remarks to the acting secretary were taken down in a 9-7 vote (with 1 Democrat joining the Republicans in that vote) and Underwood was forbidden to speak for the rest of the committee meeting because she accused the Trump Administration, through DHS’ McAleenan of intentionally causing the death of children in Customs and Border Protection custody..

As was written here in a July 30 congressional update here on McHenry County Blog, Underwood moderated her view she expressed at that May 22nd committee meeting, and I think it played out last month when Underwood voted with 40 other House Democrats on a Republican-backed motion to recommit for H.R. 3239, which gave a “Sense of Congress” that Customs and Border Protection personnel are doing an excellent job given the circumstances. 

Concerning House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson, he is scheduled to meet face-to-face with acting Secretary McAleenan on Tuesday, August 13 in Jackson, MS, concerning the domestic terrorism threat given the motives behind the El Paso mass shooter, per this Homeland Security Committee press release (https://homeland.house.gov/news/press-releases/chairman-thompson-releases-action-plan-to-redouble-efforts-to-address-domestic-terrorism-threat).

I cannot believe, while Thompson is meeting face-to-face with McAleenan in Mississippi, that last week’s ICE raids will not come up.

Maybe the results of the Jackson meeting between Thompson and McAleenan will give a timeline for when federal prosecution will take place against the business owners and the on-site managers on the issue of hiring undocumented immigrants, and allow DHS to do its job under the existing laws of the United States as passed by Congress.

But Underwood, while she needs to ask questions of the DHS at the appropriate time and place, cannot be micromanaging the DHS, through the media as she did at the press conference on Sunday in McAllen.

And the same goes for Speaker Pelosi, Congressman Cuellar and Congresswoman Roybal-Allard too.

Underwood is at her worst when she tries to talk Democratic talking points, and she demonstrated it again on Sunday.

• McHenry County Blog Underwood Immigration Moderation article link:   http://159.89.184.83/2019/07/30/underwood-moderates-immigration-criticism
• Mchenry County Blog Underwood 5/22/19 Committee Meeting article link:  http://159.89.184.83/2019/05/23/did-lauren-underwood-show-her-true-nature