Katie Britt Praises DHS Sec. Kristi Noem For Trump Admin. Deportation Efforts_ ‘I Am Incredibly Proud’

Forbes Breaking News

During Thursday’s Senate Appropriations Committee, Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) discussed DHS Secretary. Kristi Noem's border security agenda.

Transcript

00:00on this committee and your tireless effort to get us back to regular order,

00:04moving these bills not only through full committee, but making sure that they're seen on the floor.

00:11Since January 20th, under President Trump's leadership, the department has actually become

00:17a priority. Rather than turning Border Patrol agents and ICE officers into paper pushers,

00:22President Trump has empowered the men and women of CBP and ICE. This has resulted in gaining more

00:30control on the border and the enforcement of our immigration laws. In fact, President Trump has

00:37signed a new law, the Lake and Riley Act, which further empowers ICE to help protect communities

00:42from criminal aliens. He has taken swift and decisive actions in other areas, such as restoring the voice

00:49officers at ICE and reduce bureaucratic red tape that was counterproductive to achieving the mission.

00:57DHS has a vast, important, and complex mission. It's 250,000 employees are responsible for keeping

01:07Americans safe from coast to coast, on the water, and in the air. As chair of the Homeland Security

01:14Appropriations Subcommittee, it is my responsibility to work with you, Madam Secretary, and my

01:19fellow senators to appropriate the resources DHS needs to carry out its mission. One of the most

01:26important areas that we must dedicate resources to is border security and immigration enforcement.

01:33I want to say thank you to the brave men and women of Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and

01:38Customs Enforcement who show up every single day to keep our borders secure, to keep our communities safe,

01:46and to enforce our immigration laws. Since President Trump took back the White House,

01:51we have seen historically low levels of encounters along the southwest border.

01:55In March 2024, Border Patrol encountered

01:59137,473 people.

02:05Fast forward to March of 2025, under President Trump's leadership, Border Patrol encountered only 7,181 people.

02:14That's a 95 percent decrease. Thank you, Madam Secretary. Under the Biden administration,

02:21there were nearly 2 million gotaways, and in 2023, the Chief of Border Patrol testified that gotaways may

02:29have been underreported by as much as 20 percent. The work that President Trump and this administration

02:36have done to curb the flow of illegal migration is truly incredible. We've gone from record high

02:41encounters under the previous administration to two consecutive months of record lows. Ultimately,

02:47that means safer communities and families across our great country. But we cannot let up. We must continue

02:54to empower Border Patrol. We want our agents on the line to be equipped with the best tools available.

03:01We must also continue the renewed focus on interior enforcement, where we have seen tremendous gains

03:07since President Trump took the oath of office. In fact, since President Trump's inauguration, there have

03:12been a 153 percent increase in removals stemming from ICE apprehensions, a true testament to the work done

03:20by DHS law enforcement officials that are working to safeguard our communities. As you know, Madam Secretary,

03:26the ultimate goal of immigration enforcement life cycle is to remove individuals that are here unlawfully,

03:32and I commend your department in the pursuit and the end of that goal. One of the results of our open

03:37border policies supported by the previous administration was significant growth in ICE's

03:42non-detained docket, growing from 3.7 million at the end of FY 2021 to 7.6 million at the end of 2024.

03:53That is a 105 percent increase. Many will commit crimes while here, waiting their turn to be processed,

04:01which is unacceptable and why I fought so hard for the Lake and Riley Act to pass Congress.

04:06And that is also why I was proud to be there when President Trump signed that into law.

04:12I am incredibly proud when you look at the work that Alabama does to support the Department of

04:17Homeland Security and the equities there and so many hard-working dedicated public servants who show up

04:22every single day to fulfill that mission. From the incredible collaboration between DHS and our

04:28college programs on research to the HIS National Academy in Huntsville to the Coast Guard's Aviation

04:34Training Center in Mobile, it's gratifying to see that I represent a state that plays such an important

04:40role in protecting our country. Alabama is also home to some key institutions that fit within the

04:46administration's priorities of empowering state and local law enforcement to have a seat at the table

04:52when it comes to disaster recovery and national security. Both FEMA's Center for Domestic Preparedness

04:58and the National Computer Forensic Institute and Hoover provide key resources to local officials

05:03across our nation to ensure that they are equipped with the best knowledge, skills, and tools needed

05:08to protect and serve the United States of America. It is unfortunate that trainings have been canceled,

05:14especially at a time when cities across this country begin to prepare for the World Cup

05:19and the Olympics. Madam Secretary, I am certainly open to conversations about how all of this evolves,

05:25but I want to make sure that we are looking at future threats as well as existing threats,

05:30and I believe that we can do both. Another FEMA area that not only saves taxpayer dollars but saves

05:37taxpayer lives is the BRIC program. Since President Trump signed the Disaster Recovery Reform Act, which

05:43authorizes BRIC, nearly $5 billion has gone to mitigation projects across 55 states and territories and 37 tribal nations

05:51that requested funding. This is clearly a popular and important program. The program obviously is not

05:58without its challenges. Applying and implementing BRIC grants requires resources to many cities, states,

06:03and tribes that they may not have. But rather than ceasing to implement, we should work together to identify

06:09ways that BRIC could be amended to be less complex and more efficient. Madam Secretary, the people up here

06:16look forward to working with you and your team. We look forward to conversations about the President's FY26

06:22budget for DHS. From what I've seen, I am personally supportive of zeroing out the Shelter and Services

06:28Program, and I look forward to conversations about FEMA, CISA, and TSA. I hope that we will see requests for base

06:36increases to CBP, ICE, and elsewhere within DHS. You have an incredibly difficult job, Madam Secretary,

06:43and have stepped up to do it during one of the most challenging times. I want to thank you for your

06:48service, and I look forward to your testimony today and to working with you and your team to making sure

06:54that America's borders are safe and its people are secure. I now turn to Senator Murphy and recognize

06:59him for his opening remarks. Thank you very much.

Category

Transcript

Recommended