eastern, asians and africans coming to this country, not to take the job, not so they can have a better life, but possibly do harm to this great nation. that is a concern. if children can come across because agents are changing diapers or doing other things other than securing the border, i'm sure that elements that want to do harm to this country can exploit our southern border also. let the record show since 2006, there's been an increase of over 9,000 cbp agents in this country, since 2006 and now. over 9,000 more agents to secure our border and our border is less secure today, i think, than it ever has been. i want to read a portion of a late draft memo from deputy chief vitiello. the large quantity of dhs interdiction intelligence investigation processing detention removal of resources currently dedicated to address unaccompanied alien children is compromising dhs capabilities to

address other transport or criminal areas such as human 134ugling, trafficking, drugs, weapons, commercial and financial operations. if the u.s. government fails to deliver adequate consequences to deter aliens from attempting to illegally enter the u.s., there will be a greater increase in the rate of resit it very many. for facilitating human smuggling as a direct member of illicit alien smuggling organization or private facilitator. these consequences must be delivered at the border and within the interior the united states, ag through expand i.c.e. homeland investigations to target individuals facilitating unaccompanied alien children, family unit traveling to the united states. i agree with those words completely. this administration's mishandling of this situation encourages more lawlessness, encourages more folks to come here. if you talk about utilizing the

resource of the united states, everything at your disposal, we heard the national guards will be called out. article 4 section 4 guarantees every state that joins this union protection against this, protection against this, article 4, section 4, look it up. every resource. how about voice of america? are we directing a spanish-speaking voice of america into central america saying you cannot come into this country illegally? you will not get citizenship? in fact, you are going to be deported back to your home country. that is a resource we can use are we doing that? maybe we are, but we should. just like we should have national guard on the border. mr. secretary, you mention in your statement that we should do everything consistent with the laws and values of this country. we have laws on the books. the 2006 secure fence act, we've got a very porous southern border. we don't have a defense act. if you enter this country

illegally, you will be deported. you cannot enter this country illegally. are we enforcing that? we seem to be looking the other way. are you willing to say if you enter the united states illegally of any age you will be deported back to your home country? >> congressman, as you well know, we have to prioritize removals in accordance with the resources congress gives us. i have a finite amount of an enforcement resources, border security resources. so for the sake of homeland security, what we need to do is go after the worst of the worst first, which is what i believe we are doing. i think we could do a more effective job of that. i believe that we need to prioritize and go after those who represent threats to public safety. >> we increased your officers almost 9,000. >> yes, we have. >> and i'm sure deputy chief definitely thanks you for that. i support it, too. in terms of your question about

border security, let me say this. i continually inquire in this current situation, are we taking our eye offer the ball? i want to know in the rgv sector, in particular, that our border patrol agents are focused on border security as well as dealing with the volume of the kids that are coming in. over the last 1 1/2 months or so, we surged a lot of resources into that part of the country. fema, hhs and others, coast guard's down there to support cbp in their effort. as recently as i think yesterday, the chief and the deputy chief and i discussed this. i'll let the deputy chief answer for himself, but i believe it's the case that our border patrol agents on the border are on the job, they continue to do their job. >> mr. secretary, i'm out of time. whatever the chair will allow, let the record reflect that the

president asked for additional $1.4 billion to assist this effort and we are $18 trillion in debt. with that, if the deputy secretary would like to answer and you'll allow that. >> yes. >> just to reiterate, we've been surging the resources that the border patrol has, cbp, the department into rgp the last several years. so they are better resourced now than they were last year. this particular issue is a challenge for us. in fact, there are more people focused on moving the flow and booking in and processing both allenes and adult family units and adult males, all the people that come across. they are better resourced than they have been previously. >> thank you for that. for the record, i would like to include the article that has his memo. >> without objection, so ordered. chair recognizes the gentleman from california. >> thank you, mr. chair. mr. secretary, thank you for your attention and your agency's

hard work on this crisis. i just want to go through a few questions. first, would you agree, mr. secretary, that we have a broken immigration system in the united states? >> yes. >> would you agree that because we have a broken immigration system, because there is great uncertainty about our immigration system that in this chaos, this crisis with unaccompanied minor children has occurred? 2. >> i wouldn't put it that way but i believe uncertainty in the law and uncertainty that i believe the smuggling organizations are creating is a reason for the recent influx. >> mr. secretary, you would agree that this crisis and the attention your border patrol agents has had to give to these children has diverted away from their attention to securing the rest of our southern border? >> as i mentioned a moment ago,

that is an issue that i'm constantly focused on to make sure that doesn't happen. as i think the deputy chief's comments reflect, we've surged a lot of resources into the rio grande valley sector to make sure that everybody remains focused on their job in addition to dealing with the recent increase to processes people through the system, as well as maintaining our presence on the border. i believe we are continuing to do that. >> miss miller, my colleague from michigan, placed this crisis and its blame squarely at the feet of president obama's daca program, the deferred action program. that was implemented in 2012, is that correct? >> daca was implemented june 2012. >> here we are where the peak levels of unaccompanied children migration is occurring in 2014, is that right? >> yes.

daca is intended for kids who came into this country seven or more years ago. >> if miss miller is indeed right this is squarely the president's fault because of daca, wouldn't you have expected to see these peak levels of children coming across the border perhaps 2012 or 2013 rather than now? i guess i'm asking, is it fair to solely place this on daca or is this something much more complex? >> let me be clear. i believe first and foremost, and i believe most people believe first and foremost, from everything i heard, everything i've seen and my own conversations with these children, that the principal reason they are leaving their countries is the conditions in those countries. they are really bad. it has to be really bad for a parent to want to part company with his or her own 7-year-old. that is the principal reason we are seeing this. i do also believe that the

smuggling organizations are creating a misinformation campaign about the legal situation in this country. it's in their interest to create that misinformation. and i believe they are. i believe, therefore, it's imperative for us to correct the record about what is available and what is not to somebody who crosses the border. >> mr. secretary, you would agree there are some short-term and long-term solutions to what we can do? >> yes. >> a short-term would be something you've already done, writing an open letter to the parents of children crossing our southwest boarder to dispel the myths about what it means to come here, and the dangers that the children will go through in their path. >> if there were -- if this administration's policies were the principal reason they are coming here, would you see kids from a whole bunch of other countries, too. >> would you agree another short-term solution would be working as the president and vice president have been doing so, to work with mexico and

guatemala on that much smaller border between mexico and guatemala, in addition to working on our much more vast boarder? >> yes. >> mr. secretary, would you agree that a long-term solution would be putting certainty in our immigration policy so that there are not misconceptions as to what it means to children anywhere across the world? >> yes. >> thank you, mr. secretary. with that i yield back the balance of my time. >> chair recognizes mr. palazzo. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i do believe daca and our failure of enforcing our immigration laws are the cause of this. the number of unaccompanied children has grown since 2012. last year it was a record of 5,000, now we have 65,000. i don't blame just the president for not enforcing our immigration laws. i know many do.

it's not just that. it's even members of congress. talking about a pathway to amnesty lays out the welcome mat for people around the world that want to come into the united states illegally, why our borders are not secured. it's irresponsible to talk about what we'll do before we can stop the flow into the country. this is not a surprise what has happened. it's everyone. we need to secure our borders and make sure people cannot get into the country illegally. we need to make sure people can overstay their visas. if i can get a quick answer. my constituents are frequently on flood alert. we prepare for emergencies, invest in mitigation, we are still dealing with the aftermaths of sandy, irene and lee. the president's smart budget request did not ask for additional funding to pay for this crisis at the border. we know we knew about it as far

back as january. here is my question. how can you guarantee me and my constituents that the money to address the crisis at the border won't come from the same pots that helped pennsylvanians back home deal with floods by putting fema in charge, you've kind of signalled a disaster declaration is coming. i'm concerned that our flood disaster funding will be constantly drained by the situation. if you can quickly answer that. >> well, i can assure you, congressman, that if your constituents or anybody else faces a major disaster, we will support a response. >> but is it coming out of those same pots of money? are we draining the money that will be used for flood disasters by using fema? is it coming out of that same pot? >> fema's coordinated role doesn't mean that fema is undertaking to support all these

agencies. all these agencies are paying for this out of their own -- >> i'm just worried about where the money is coming from. does that mean that pot get drained a little more? quickly. >> congressman, the funds being used for this were already funds expended under current authority to deal with these issues. funding that's being directed is done through inner agency agreements. money is not coming out of drf to pay for those functions, which are primarily funded by congress. >> if i could go back to the -- you know, if it's not our lack of enforcing immigration laws, then why don't they stop somewhere in mexico? why come all the way to the united states? why put these children a thousand miles and risk their lives to get to the united states? there's nowhere in mexico that is better than honduras or guatemala? i don't buy that. i don't think the american people do either. department of homeland security was created to stop bad things from happening before they happen. here's a copy of the ad that dhs

put out in january 29th. in fact, we wanted an answer from the contractors by february 19th. it said there will be approximately 65,000 children in total. my question is, who knew that there was going to be 65,000? the largest amount that ever came was 5,000. somewhere we pull out this number of 65,000. it happens to be correct. why was the administration surprised? why are we acting surprised now if in january we expected this to happen? and why weren't we prepared if we expected 65,000? why didn't we do anything to stop this in advance? you talked in your testimony that the president talked to the president of mexico last week and vice president biden just recently -- why then if back in january 29th we anticipated this happening? >> first of all, i don't know where thatte estimate comes fro.

>> it's in dhs' ad. >> i don't know where the estimate comes from. i don't know who created the 65,000 estimate. in all likelihood, we'll probably exceed that at the rate we're going. we've known this has been a problem since i took office six months ago. i've been hearing about this issue going back to my confirmation hearing. so -- and we've known we've had a problem in the rio grande valley sector, which is why in april i asked my staff to create a campaign plan for the rio grande valley sector in particular for the southwest border to bring to bear all the resources of dhs on this issue. we've known we've had an issue with third-country nationals, children and adults. i issued the campaign plan in early may. the numbers very clearly have spiked more recently in april, may, which has required us to bring to bear the resources of the entire federal government. >> but we shouldn't be surprised because we saw it coming as far

back as january. somebody did in dhs. i'd like to know who it is, if you could find out. >> i'm not disagreeing with you. >> but it went from 5,000 to 65,000. something happened. when the largest amount that ever came of unaccompanied children was 5,000, which was last year, something happened that 65,000 showed up and somebody knew about it. and surprise? >> i think it was more like 38,000 last year. >> well, from 5,000 to 38 to 65. >> no, sir. you want to somehow put it on the doorstep of d.a. can. i keep saying that -- >> no, no, no. i'm blaming congress as well. and our lack of immigration enforcement. there's nothing wrong with our immigration laws. we just don't enforce them. we've released 36,000 criminal aliens backn to the streets. 160 of them committed murder. if we could release people who

have committed murder, i'm sure it has something to do with it. thank you. >> gentleman's time is expired. mr. richmond from louisiana. >> thank you, mr. secretary, for coming today. let me just go back to some basic questions. i've heard today a number of times that we should send the kids back. do many of the kids actually not make it and die along the long route to make it to our border? >> the route is definitely treacherous. i can't tell you with any degree of certainty who doesn't make it because i'm just not in a position to know that. i have heard in a number of different places that these kids are exploited by the smuggling organizations. they travel over a thousand miles up the coast of mexico on trains and trucks. it's getting hot.

it's exceedingly dangerous. >> and what happens to them if we just turn them around? >> well, if we just turn them around, they just go back to the conditions that they were motivated to leave from. >> if they make it back. if they make the long journey back. besides the humanitarian reasons and reasons of conscience and our morals, the william act would keep you from turning them around, wouldn't it? >> well, the 2008 law is not in con flukt with commencing a deportation proceeding against the child. it's my understanding that the law would not permit an expedited removal of an unaccompanied child. that's my understanding of the law. we do expedited removals. let's say a mexican crosses the border. they're apprehended by one of

the chief's border patrol agents. we can do an expedited removal of the mexican right back into the country of mexico. we can do expedited removals of adults into central america where there's no immigration judge involved. but in terms of an expedited removal for an unaccompanied child, my understanding of the law is that's not available. >> and as much as you heard today that we should just either turn them around or expeditiously remove them, do you know of any legislation introduced that someone put their name on to repeal the william force act? >> not to my knowledge. >> we also talked a little bit about -- and i heard you mention a little bit about mexico and the fact that you have -- the vice president has met and the president has had telephone conversations. has the government of mexico started taking any steps, any affirmative steps to help us with this issue? >> we have over the last several years been in discussions with

them about our shared border security interest, and we've increased that engagement in light of this current situation. and i believe we'll continue to have productive conversations. >> well, specifically on this issue and the fact you just mentioned we're looking at probably over 60,000 unaccompanied minors this year, have they taken any steps to help us with this issue right now, besides just conversations? >> i'm sure they will help us with the public affairs campaign. excuse me. and we will continue our discussions about our shared border security interest. i've had those discussions beginning in february, and i believe they'll be productive. >> mr. chairman, and i know the secretary has to leave, so i'll yield back so my colleagues can ask some questions. >> thank you for that. to get through all the members

in the time we have, i am going to strictly enforce a five-minute rule. mr. perry from pennsylvania. >> thanks, mr. chairman. and if it hasn't already been done, i'd like to submit a copy of the advertisement that's been referenced. i would also like to just reject categorically any claims made by members of this committee that somehow america or american citizens are at fault for this crisis, this situation on the border. with that having been said, gentlemen, thank you very much for your service in these difficult times. we're very appreciative. i would like to turn to mr. vitello. is that correct? thank you, sir. how long have criminals been smuggling people across the bord border, to your knowledge? >> my entire career, 29 years. >> so at least 29 years. and have smugglers lied to people south of the border that might be interested in seeking

to cross the border about the conditions or what they might encounter or their status when they come here? have smugglers lied to people in the past? >> that is the experience of the border patrol. >> so in your opinion, in your estimation, what has changed recently in the last two or three years that has fostered this immense increase in traffic, especially of people that are young? 17 and below coming -- what has changed? and are there any metrics at all you know of to support the claim you might make shortly? >> i think lots of things have changed. i think the -- i mean, we've talked about all of the push factors. i've seen these reports. people are fleeing, you know, difficult conditions. they're reuniting with family in the united states. they're fleeing economic uncertainty and failed governments, both locally and nationally. >> so the conditions that you're talking about, the crime, the uncertain conditions, the poor conditions economically, what

has changed dramatically? because would you admit that the numbers have increased dramatically? >> no doubt about that. >> is there a corresponding increase dramatically in poorness of conditions in these countries south of the border to correlate? >> i just don't know. i think it's been a while that those conditions have existed. >> yeah, it's been a while, right? my concern is there's some narrative here that seems to be perpetrated among the american citizens that somehow things have exponentially decreased south of the border and that's counterpart to this exodus south of the border into the united states. that's what's causing it. i'm not sure it's true. you don't know at this time of any metric that would support that. >> not metrics. >> so do you think there's any difference in our policy? and i would agree with the remarx of mr. barletta that a congress that has implied that wholesale amnesty might be in order if you make it across the border. but are there any other policies

from the administration or otherwise that might be contributing to this circumstance currently on the border? >> i think that we're addressing in the broad spectrum all of the things that i believe will help make this better. >> i understand. but is there any particular policy that might be -- you know, whatever the numbers are. 5,000 to 38,000 to 68,000. is there anything you can think of that supports it? >> i'm not sure i'd categorize it as policy. we've struggled not to have a sufficient level of, in this case, detention for people who bring their children across the border. as it relates to the unaccompanied children, the law dictates how they're processed, both in the initial for book in and deportation proceedings, and then turning over to -- >> i understand that, but what's changed to drive so many to come recently? what's changed? >> i'm not sure. >> okay. i'm not sure. and i'm not sure either, but i think our policy has changed. the public perception that you can come here and stay has

changed. >> i've seen those reports. those are reflected in the intelligence we've collected. it's in the -- >> it's not reflected? >> no, it is reflected. in the open source reports. >> so has human trafficking also gone up as a result of these increased numbers? >> i'm not sure it's gone up. i think these populations have gone -- have increased, which leads me to believe that smuggling has increased as well. >> all right. mr. secretary, i have to move on. i appreciate your answers. regarding the 29 january advertisement for escort services, i understand you were on the job for about a month. so you're somewhat unaware. do you know what drove that policy decision? do you have any idea? to advertise. >> i haven't seen the document. >> i'm going to provide it and have it -- >> i believe it's an improvement document. >> plthere's a couple points of contact. if you could in writing respond to me about what the policy decisions were that drove the

advertisement. and do you know if this is unprecedented? have we advertised for these escorts in the past? and if not, why not? and if now, why now? >> i'd have to see the -- >> all right. i yield back, but i would like those answers in writing. can i get a commitment to get them? >> i always believe in being responsive to congress. >> thank you. >> chair recognizes gentle lady from new york, ms. clark. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i want to thank mr. secretary, mr. vitiello for your testimony here today. it's been very enlightening. i want to thank you for your thoughtful approach to really handling a multifaceted, multidimensional, very complex crisis. there are a lot of moving parts here. and it's clearly something that we have to work with in terms of a work in progress. i was glad to hear about the

diplomatic component to what you're doing in terms of reaching out to el salvador, honduras, guatemala. my question is a logistical one, similar to the one mr. vella raised. what exactly do you anticipate in terms of the logistical challenge of reuniting children who don't have any relatives in the united states? how do we work with embassies, consulates to reunite children from various countries with their parents back home? and how do we identify that? have you given thought to that as of yet? >> well, once the child's identified as an unaccompanied child, the law requires dhs turn the child over to hhs. so your question really goes to hhs. >> okay. >> and their process, which i'm

not fully equipped to answer. but they have a process of identifying a family member and acting in the best interest of the child. >> very well. i just wanted to get a sense because i can imagine it's a daunting task. i did want to comment for the basis of this hearing that i find it very troubling that we would want to move a military operation such as the national guard to our borders to address unaccompanied minors. and i just want to put that on the record because we can't say it's a humanitarian crisis on the one hand. and i think just about every colleague has acknowledged that. and then want to put arms on the border to meet children who are fleeing clearly an untenable situation in their homelands.

do you have a sense of the average amount of children coming in daily and which nations, what percentage are coming from what nations? >> in the rio grande valley sector, where almost all of this is occurring, we're encountering about -- the number varies, but we're encountering lately about 350 a day. >> and do you have a sense -- are they -- i mean, do you get a sense that they're being -- for instance, if they're being smuggled, are they children from varying countries, or are they typically grouped by country? >> honduras, guatemala, el salvador. >> so you could conceivably run into children traveling together but from different countries? >> i'm not sure about that. i'm not sure about the -- how they configure themselves in these groups. i do know that something like

three-quarters of them are from honduras, el salvador, guatemala. >> i'd be interesting, mr. secretary, if we could drill down at some point to get a better sense of which countries seem to have a larger percentage of children coming in. if, mr. vitiello, if you could get a sense of, are these children meeting in the desert? are they meeting on railway cars? because at least what we're seeing from the press is that the children tend to gravitate and come across together, so you're not seeing individual kids necessarily but children traveling together. >> they're very clearly coming in groups. they're herded, shepherded by a civilian guide at various points along the journey. that's part of the smuggling organization. and it starts at the point of origin in central america and

goes through mexico. so they're clearly traveling in groups. they're not traveling alone. and the numbers are roughly equivalent among the three countries. honduras might be slightly larger than the other two, but they're roughly equivalent. >> very well. i yield back, mr. chairman. i thank you once again. >> mr. plaza is recognized. >> thank you, mr. chairman. as an active member of the national guard, i see first hand the importance of the national guard supporting our armed forces to protect our country. as guard members return from overseas, many of them stand ready and willing for their next mission. as many of my colleagues have pointed out today, the national guard can play a pivotal role in securing america's borders. we've seen successful guard missions in the past with operations jump start, phoenix, and nimbus. last year i called on the department to use the national guard to help secure the border. in may 2013, i offered an amendment in this committee to the border security results act, which would ensure that dhs considers lessons learned from past national guard missions on the border.

both the current and previous administrations have used the national guard on more of a short-term ad hoc basis rather than on any long-term, strategic plan. secretary johnson, wouldn't it be beneficial for the department to partner with the national guard and develop a long-term strategy for the guard to assist along the borders? and wouldn't it be the borders would be more secure if we had a well-planned, budgeted strategy that consistently used the guard members rather than just using them sporadically? >> congressman, first of all, i want to consider every option to deal with this circumstance. i take no lawful option off the table. as i'm sure you know, the guard has limitations, including -- a guard can't be involved directly in law enforcement. there are some exceptions to that. and the department of defense obviously has a lot to say about

this too. it's their resource. it comes out of their budget. there are a lot of demands on the guard, particularly in this season. we're dealing with hurricane season. there may be different crises they respond to. but i've heard the calls from some that we put the guard on the border. i'd want to understand better what the options are for the use of the guard depending on the direction of this situation talks. but i don't take any option off the table. but there are definitely some limitations on the use of the guard in this respect, i think, and we have to be mindful of those. >> mr. vitiello, you've been with the border protection for a while. were you a part of any of these guard missions in the past? can you comment on whether there's pros and cons? >> so, yes, we've had a great relationship over the years with the national guard and operation jump start and the ongoing

operation fay lynx now in which we use national guard resources to do things like surveillance and sensor monitoring for us. it's not without its challenges. we were blessed to have the guard when we were building the new 6,000 agents. it gave us a bridge to more capability on the ground. we learned from them and the resources that we're reusing from d.o.d. as they come back from theater and are pressed into service for border security. so we've learned a lot from them in all manner with regard to plans, strategic deployment, et cetera. but having the guard on the border has some limitations. this work is best done by law enforcement agents, in my opinion. learning from the guard, there are some things that they can do. i think the secretary is right to keep our options open. but as it relates to this particular problem, where it's most acute in the rio grande valley, it's not a challenge to arrest people who come as children or families with children.

the other zones along the southwest border and in south texas are well patrolled and are either better equipped than they were last year or just as well equipped as they were last year. >> all right. well, i think originally when i -- last year it was suggesting the amendment was to ask dhs to study the lessons learned. it was to look at it. don't take any option off the table. but with the guards basically sustaining combat missions, humanitarian missions the past 12 years, they've proven they can multitask and do numerous things. i still believe it's much more cost effective and efficient to surge the guard to the border, get the operational control, and work them into your plan. they're going to train somewhere every year. and you could rotate them in, rotate them out. fix the issues, figure out what they could do. to congressman clarke's issue, we don't want kids walking across the border and being met

with guns. but there's probably other agencies, nonprofit or federal groups, that could be out there. but our borders are dangerous. people are -- we don't have control over our borders. we don't know what's coming across. but we do know there's drug cartels, gun running, there's drugs. that would be another mission. it could be an escort mission. it could be a rove and patrol. it could be communications. it could be providing the necessary assistance. because i don't think it would be wise to expand the full-time employees of the border protection agency. i don't think the american people want to see more federal law enforcement agencies when they have this tool, this cost-effective tool at its fingertips. i just want to urge, mr. secretary, to really consider this. i know every member of the national guard that i serve with would love the opportunity to secure our borders. the american people want to know that our borders are secured and that we're safe and sound. so thank you for being here today. >> chair now recognized mr. barber from arizona. >> thank you, mr. chairman.

i want to thank you for convening this hearing on this very important issue, this crisis that we're facing on our borders, particularly in texas and arizona. thank you, mr. secretary, and the other witnesses for being with us this morning. my state is directly affected by the influx of these children from central america. we have the border patrol station in my neighboring district, but nevertheless, the impact is felt throughout southern arizona. i share the concern of many of my colleagues. virtually all of us have either young children or grandchildren, and we can imagine what it must be like for these children to be in a strange environment without their family members. and i just want to say that i've seen what our border patrol agents are doing, and they're doing a noble job trying to keep up with a very difficult situation. the cartels are exploiting the

situation in many ways. i want to get to a question about that in a moment. i'm very concerned about the influx and what implications it has, mr. tesecretary, for the security of the border. i represent one of nine border districts, 83 miles of border. the people i represent, particularly those who live and work along the border, are concerned about their safety. the concern they've expressed to me is as border patrol agents have been pulled into the nogalis station in particular to care for these children, we've compromised their ability to secure the border and keep people safe. right now we have about 1200 kids, i believe, at the nogalis community. they've been moved from the border patrol station into a warehouse where they're trying to accommodate the need. and we've estimated that maybe 60,000 unaccompanied minors will be coming and be apprehended this year. as i said before, the border patrol agents, many of whom have

family members that have children, have been bringing in books, have been bringing in toys, bringing in diapers, caring for these children. clearly this is not their job, but this is what they're doing. first of all, how many unaccompanied minors are still in cvb custody as we speak? and how many of them are in custody in the tucson sector? let me start with that question and i'll move on to two others. >> well, first of all, i'm going to nogalis tomorrow to inspect the situation there. and one of the things i'll be asking is the question you asked. are we having to divert border patrol personnel from their border patrol duties? it's very important to me that we minimize the circumstances of that. the capacity at nogalis, i think, is about 1200. it's near capacity with

unaccompanied children. we were at one point sending family units there. we're not. we're just sending the unaccompanied children there. from that point, they go to hhs custody. overall, children apprehended in the rio grande valley sector that are in custody right now, i don't have the number offhand. it's probably -- i don't have the number offhand. i wouldn't want to hazard to guess, but i can get that to you. >> very good. i appreciate the fact you're going to be asking about the impact that the agents being asked to come to nogalis to staff up for these children, what effect that's having on border security. i've been in touch with people who live and work along the border, ranchers and, in fact, heard from some agents about the fact they've been pulled off shifts, that we have less agents on the ground that are helping to secure the border. so mr. secretary, if you could get back to us with some

information about how many have been pulled and what the impact is. and let me just close with this one question. it's a common question. i've been particularly discouraged by the fact that virtually nobody in arizona knew that these children were coming. i found out about it through the newspaper, the local sheriff found out about it the same way. even the sector chief found out about it as the children were arriving. what steps is the department taking to make sure that if we have any additional transfers like this, that local authorities and officials are properly notified? >> well, first of all, it shouldn't have happened that way. the congressional delegation, local officials should have gotten notice that this situation necessitated that we extend our processing to nogalis. i've instructed my staff that when we have to go to these places, we give the congressional delegation and local officials advance

information about that. >> thank you, mr. secretary. and thank you for what you're doing to keep up with this terrible situation. and i particularly want to thank our border patrol agents for what they're doing every day. i yield back. >> chair recognizes ms. brooks from indiana. >> thank you. and thank you again, mr. chairman, for holding this very important hearing. thank you all for your service. my question i want to follow up on the smuggling questions and actually to chief vitiello. could you please talk with us a little bit about additional resources that are being provided to you all to prosecute the smugglers, and has there been an increase in prosecutions of smugglers in the last six months? >> i would have to get back to you for specifics on prosecution cases in the last six months, but we have surged our own resources to develop leads for case work to understand what we know or what we can know more about alien smuggling networks.

i.c.e. has also surged resources at this problem for the same purpose, for them to increase their level of case work looking at smuggling networks and just to the point as it relates to border patrol resources, the nogales placement center is being conducted on agent overtime. we've added overtime in all of the locations that have helped us process folks, whether it be nogales or el paso and certainly in the rio grande valley. >> so smuggling operations have been going on for years and years. this is in the new. i'm a former u.s. attorney in the bush administration. we did smuggling cases. but this is unprecedented levels is what it seems, obviously with children. what are the smuggling operations? what is your intelligence telling you? what kind of groups? is it ms-13? is it barrio 18? is it the gangs that have developed smuggling organizations, and is that really what's bringing these groups? >> i think that over the years, over the last several years, the sophistication of smuggling

networks and their connectivity to cartels has been a concern for quite some time. the work that we have from the field intelligence reports that have been generated to our office suggest that people contract smugglers both in their point of origin. sometimes they wait until they're in mexico. sometimes they wait until they're at the border. but that's the kind of thing that we recognize. post-arrest interviews give us information. we look for indications for intelligence in things like pocket trash, develop phone numbe numbers, and pass those leads in the local sense to the inner agency and certainly to homeland security investigations to follow up and try to attack those networks as they bring folks in. >> do you have any idea from the young people that you've interviewed how many kids have died? >> i don't have any direct information about that. >> do we have any information about any children who have died or are missing? >> not specifically. i mean, i think that, you know, we recognize that this journey

is a very difficult one. certainly at the border over the years we've seen people fail in their attempt by succumbing to the elements. >> and mr. secretary, as you've indicated, there is a public relations campaign that you initiated. are we talking about increasing prosecutions of smugglers in central america so that we can create that deterrent effect and let people know they are being prosecuted, what the penalties are, and that we're actually catching any of the smugglers, if we are? and maybe if we, in our law enforcement resources, working with the mexican authorities are not being successful in our smuggling prosecutions, i'm curious whether or not we're talking about that. >> the answer is yes. i'd like to add to what the deputy chief said. homeland security investigations, which is part of i.c.e., has been surging resources to deal with the

smuggling organizations. in the month of may, they made something like 163 arrests of so-called smugglers. identi i've directed we add resources to that. the department of justice is also adding resources to this effort. i think the key is the money trail. because the money trail often originates in the united states. so if we can track the money, we can stop the flow of money that goes to pay these organizations to smuggle the kids, we go a long way to dealing with this problem. >> and are you publicizing the prosecution of 160 individuals, which i would commend you, for the month of may in central ameri america, you know, letting everybody know who has been arrested and what has happened? >> it's in our interest to do that, yes. >> and i have grave concern that the groups like ms-13, which are growing in this country, are bringing these kids in who now owe ms-13. would that be correct? they owe them a bit of debt for

bringing them into this country. is that fair to say, chief vitiello? >> it is often the case that people contract with smugglers without a payment up front. and so that is a concern. >> and so now these young people are coming into our communities owing the gangs some debt. would that be correct? >> it's important for us to know who's responsible for this smuggling and recognize where the networks are in all three countries. >> i certainly hope we keep track of them in our country. thank you. i yield back. >> so the gentle lady's point, this committee will be introducing an anti-smuggling bill in the future. mr. sanford is recognized. >> yes, sir. mr. vitiello, thank you for your testimony. mr. fugate, you've been incredibly patient during this testimony. a lot of questions haven't been directed towards you. given the fact we are in hurricane season and i am from the coast, i'll be calling. and to you, mr. secretary, i'm a huge fan. you know, the things you've done

in the united states military are just incredible. i've been watching you over the last couple hours during testimony. i wrote down, bearing of a military office, verbal dexterity of a philadelphia lawyer, and preciseness of a ceo. so i'm a big fan. but in the few minutes i have, i'm going to ask a couple fairly pointed questions. i'd ask you answer them as qu k quickly as possible. all with the caveat of i'm a big fan. fair enough? >> okay. yes, sir. here it comes. >> you know, going back to being a lieutenant way back when, it just strikes me that, you know, as you guys set up a perimeter in the military, it is not a conditional perimeter. it's not contingent on what mexico might do or pakistan might do. it is an absolute perimeter.

i think one of the things the american public is thirsing for is the same kind of decisiveness and reality they see in the military in a perimeter that isn't breached on the southern border. why can't we have that in short form? >> well, first of all, you have to realize these kids probably want to get caught. in some cases, as -- >> well, not want to. they're running to officers. >> they will run to the nearest officer and say, here i am. >> right. >> so you have to ask, you know, will it increase border presence deter that? >> i guess let me rephrase it. i only have a couple minutes. should we have a border that is in essence conditional? because part of the testimony was based on what we might get mexico to do, what we might not get mexico to do, or what we might get guatemala to do. shouldn't it be at least a goalpost an absolute rather than

conditional border? >> we knead to have secure borders, absolutely, if that's your question. we need secure borders. so one of the things that i've tried to do here in my testimony is lay out all the things we're doing to deal with this situation, which not only involves processing the kids but turning the tide around. >> but i mean, part of what we're doing now -- because i think there's a real difference between words and actions. and a lot of our actions have been absolute. our words have been absolute. the words you used were, we're going to bring to bear all assets of the federal government. i think that most people don't believe that. they believe that if we brought to bear all assets of the federal government, we could have a secure border. >> translator: wel >> well, let me say this. i'm going to say what i said before. i want to know every option, and i want to consider every option. and i'm prepared to seriously

consider every lawful option -- >> no, we've been here a couple hours. i understand. but i guess going to the point, though, as a strategy. i mean, you're an able, fit guy. military guy. as a strategy f you loved your kid and wanted to get him in america, wouldn't you send the kid first, and given our present policy of nondeportation and sending them to a family somewhere domestic in the united states, get them secure and then you'd be able to evade and move and maybe get into the border on your own and then get reunited with your family. >> i have to tell you, the conditions for me to -- my kids are 18 and 19. but the conditions for me to part with them when they were 8 or 9 and say, go have this thousand-mile journey, and i'll see you later, would have to be pretty dire before i'd give up the responsibility. >> if i'm not mistaken, i think a billion people around the earth live on like a dollar a

day or some astoundingly know number. i don't remember the exact statistic. i think there are a number of dire circumstances around the globe which goes back to conditional versus -- one last question since i'm out of time. i think, you know, there was frequent reference to i don't think the law allows me to send an unaccompanied minor home. and my question to you would be, which comes first, the law or the constitution? because as i read through the 14th amendment, i think the constitution is fairly clear on what citizenship entails. >> well, let me be clear. i don't believe that the law would allow us to send an unaccompanied child home in an expedited removal proceeding. they are given notices to appear. deportation proceedings are begun when they're apprehended 37. >> but for practical purposes, would you suggest once they're here, they're here? and you didn't refute that. >> the law requires that once a

child is identified as unaccompanied, cbp has to give them to hhs. they do what's in the best interest of the child. that's what the law passed by the congress requires. >> understood, and i'm out of time unfortunately. i know you have to go, but thank you very much for your testimony, sir. >> thank you. and let me thank the witnesses for your testimony. mr. secretary, let me personally thank you for showing up on such a short notice on such a very important issue. i know you didn't create this. you inherited this. i know you're working hard to resolve it. i pledge the support of this committee to work with you towards that effort. with that, members may have >> for the second day this week, hearing on the influx of unaccompanied minors at the us-mexico border. wednesday immigration and customs enforcement officials

the 52,000tify about children that have crossed the border since october. coverage of the house judiciary committee starts at 2:00 eastern on c-span three. up, congressman harry cuellar of texas on the circumstances of driving unaccompanied immigrant children across the border. look at options in iraq and defense opportunity -- options. a member of the armed services committee on readiness. autism speaks cofounder and former ceo of nbc universal on federal and private research funding on autism. washington journal live at 7:00 every morning on c-span. using c-span radio on any phone.

you can hear congressional coverage, public affairs forums in today's washington journal program. listen to every cap at the days events of 5:00 eastern. you can also hear audio of the five network sunday affair programs beginning sunday at noon eastern. >> an update on the primary races today. thad cochran has been named a winner in a very close race against chris mcdaniel. in new york, the race has not officially been called. -- 22 term congressman put to challenge.

is resigningoburn before the end of his term. you can find more of today's election results at www.c-span.org. now, lawmakers celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 1960 four civil rights act and present the congressional gold medal to the family of dr. martin luther king jr.. from the u.s. capitol rotunda, this is about an hour. >> ladies and gentlemen, these welcome our honored guests. members of the united states house of representatives. speaker of the house of united states of representatives. ladies and gentlemen, the

speaker of the house of the united states of representatives, the honorable john boehner. >> good afternoon and welcome to the united states capital. [applause] as you can see, the dome is under construction, getting repairs and there is a technical term for that canopy but the architect said we could refer to it as the donut. on july 2, 1960 four congress completed what may be the most fundamental, consequential legislation of our long history. rights act of 1964 recognizes that every citizen has the right to pursue happiness without discrimination or segregation on the grounds of race, color religion or national origin.

we have with us many special guests. president johnson's daughter. along with her husband, chuck robb. [applause] we are pleased to have with us members of the king family. let us welcome them to the hall. >> please fan for the presentation of the colors for the armed forces color guard.

♪ so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming and the rockets red glare the bombs bursting in air gave proof through the night that our flag was still there that banner yet wave

land of the free the braveme of ♪

>> ladies and gentlemen please remain standing at the chaplain of the united states house of representatives gives the invocation. us pray. loving god as congress comes the 50thto commemorate anniversary of the civil rights , may the hands and hearts of this nation be raised in prayer and praise. couple whose lives were intimately involved in those great struggles. the reverend dr. martin luther king jr., and caretta scott king. justifiably considered the first family of the civil rights movement. may the breath of god uphold their noble and heroic story.

may it carry to all generations a message to inspire all americans. no matter their belonging to a minority in our country. may the sacrifices of martin luther and caretta and those of so many inspired by them, or who joined them in their struggles throughout, echo now history as it calls to us all to be men and women for others. especially for those whose rights are threatened. god bless america. justice for all,

both now and into a greater future for our nation. amen. >> please be seated. ladies and gentlemen, from the 11th district of all high oh, and chair of the congressional .lack caucus [applause] >> good afternoon. today we commemorate one of the most significant pieces of legislation in our history, and we honor to of the world's greatest leaders. after martin luther king jr. and president lyndon b. johnson, exemplify the principles on which our nation was founded. the the the service leaders committed their lives to moving america closer to what it can be.

dr. king andrk of president johnson, i am able to stand here today as the third african-american and second woman to represent the 11th district of ohio. i am here on behalf of the 43 members of the congressional black caucus which i am honored to share. the civil rights act of 1964 did more than help end discrimination in america. the civil rights act made it so legal discrimination could no longer be a barrier to what one could achieve. the civil rights act clarify the difference between all men being created equal, and all men receiving equal treatment. established one as a principal, the civil rights act of 1964 as a practice. giving a generation of americans

hope that they too could be acknowledged as full citizens of this great nation. theresident johnson signed civil rights act of 1964 into law, he stated that america is a founders new freedom would only be secure if each generation fought to renew and enlarge its meaning. what the civil rights act and his other great works of a president johnson did his arts to protect our freedom, and with his words, activism and sacrifice him a dr. king did the same. lies, the responsibility with every american. especially those of us in this house. the civil rights movement an act of 1964 established equal opportunity and equal protection under the law for every american. together we must protect it. as dr. kane said the time is always right to do what is right. it is only right that we fulfill

the promise of the civil rights act by ensuring every american right to vote is protected. let us pass the voting rights amendment at the 2014. [applause] now, please join me in reflection as we listened to president johnson's remarks as he signs the civil rights act into law. >> the civil rights act is a challenge to all of us to go to work in our timidity in our states, and in our hearts. eliminate the last vestiges of injustice. i urge every religious leader

,very business and professional every working man, every housewife, i urge every american to join in this effort to bring justice and hope to all of our people, and to bring peace to our land. of comew citizens, we to a time of history we must not face. us lay aside a relevant differences, and make our nation whole. let us hasten the day when our and measure -- strength and unbounded spirit will be free to do the great

works ordained for this nation god.e just and wise >> ladies and gentlemen, from the fifth district of georgia, the honorable john lewis. [applause]

>> we gather here in the capital to honor dr. martin luther king jr. and hezbollah good wife, caretta scott king. one of the most distinguished husband-and-wife teams of the 20th century. often history remembers speeches , fax, figures. i cannot forget their love from their union came in endurance of strength that carried many of us through the darkest days of the movement. when they stood together, their hope. became leaders of resting on their shoulders. values, aon of revolution of ideas. the rare ability to tell the story of a movement through song, to music, to

travel the breath of america. together they taught us the way of peace. the way of love, the way of and they inspired an entire generation to find a way to get their way. infind a way to get necessary trouble. through their action, speeches, and writing, they have created the climate for the passage of the civil rights act of 1964, and the voting rights act of 1965. president lyndon johnson signed these two pieces of legislation into law. without the leadership of lyndon johnson, we would not be where we are today. there will be no barack obama as

president of the united states of america. [applause] appropriateg and that on the 50th anniversary of the passage of the civil rights act of 1964, we honor this unbelievable couple, dr. martin luther king jr. and his beloved mrs. caretta scott king. they were my friends, my brother and sister. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the united states editor for michigan. carl levin. [applause] >> thank you. good afternoon. the congressional gold medal resolution that we are implementing today commemorates

the ability of an inspiring couple, armed only with the righteousness of their cause. we all commemorate today the ledity of elected officials by president johnson. armed only with the desire for justice, to overcome the divisions of party, in order to help overcome the divisions of race. in october, 1960, martin luther king jr. road to his beloved t etta from a georgia prison away, where he had been hauled away in the night. this is what he said.

i have the faith to believe this inessive suffering will some little way make america a better country. if the reverend and mrs. king could speak to us now, if our predecessors who passed the civil rights act could speak to us now, with a not challenge us to come together, across lines of party and geography, in a great cause, with a not encourage us, for example, to pass legislation restoring the protections of the voting rights act? [applause] would they not encourage us to pass legislation reversing the

policies that leave thousands of nonviolent young men languishing in prison? [applause] we can best celebrate the lives of those we honor and remember today by channeling their inspiration and to taking on the task before us. dauntingely far less than the wines that they undertook. coming together to help lead our nation on its continuing march towards a more perfect union. -- duty that we have lai the duty they have laid before us. our nation owes a debt of gratitude to your father and

mother that can never be repaid. this congressional gold medal is the most congress has the power to give. thank you. [applause] >> the united states army chorus. we shall overcome e shall overcome we shall overcome

i do believe rt we shall overcome sunday.

we shall overcome someday we shall all be free free ll all be we shall all be free someday i do believe rt shall overcome someday

we shall be free ♪ [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the >> goode nancy pelosi afternoon. thank you all. thank you mr. speaker for bringing us together in the rotunda. the gazetting between

of martin luther king jr. and abraham lincoln. they are looking at each other directly across the rotunda. [applause] it is an honor to be here with you. four democratic assistant leader, honored he is here as well. i want to join my colleagues in forking the king family sharing your mother and father with us. we are deeply in your debt and this is not enough thanks. it is a token of our .ppreciation

thank you for being with us today. this would not be possible without your parents, certainly not possible at all without president lyndon johnson. [applause] rotundather in the under the gaze of reverend king and president lincoln he recall , to theysburg address declaration of independence. alice was a new nation -- nation under the declaration that all men are created equal. a century after the gettysburg address, a century later, dr.

king stood on the steps of the lincoln memorial and called our nation to act on those words to reassert the vision of our founding fathers. a year later, dr. king stood at as-- as an honored guest resident johnson signed the civil rights bill into law. the law stands as a pillar of justice and equality in enduring testament to the force of dr. ta scott king. morede america american. .n 1959, king traveled to india they traveled to study mahatma gandhi principle of nonviolence to apply to civil rights struggle here at home.

they learn from each other. word for nonviolence in sanskrit, the same word means nonviolence and it means insistence on the truth. [applause] they knew would mean sacrifice and struggle for their family. for many across the country, the kings would insist on the truth that all men and women are created equal. dr. king was not only nonviolent in his action but nonviolent in his words. that was a source of great a, andth to him and corett the movement. when the act was passed we never --some of youf

were born. we would never dream that on this 50th anniversary we would look out in the mall, and there would be a monument, a memorial to martin luther king as a neighbor to the lincoln memorial . and, referencing what lewis said, what would president lincoln think, that on that day, one that memorial was dedicated, it was dedicated by president barack obama. [applause] all of this progress is made possible because of dr. king's insistence on the truth. that insistence on the truth stirs the leadership of president kennedy and the legislative virtuosity of

president lyndon johnson. we mourn james chaney, andrew goodman. they and so many others made this possible. the civil rights act was incomplete without the voting rights act. president johnson and dr. king passage in the next congress. they those t stand among greatest legislative a con was ms. of our country. [applause] as we bestowed the congressional gold medal on dr. martin luther scott king, wea must insist on the truth.

to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the civil rights act, we must pass the bipartisan voting rights act in this congress. thank you all. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the republican leader of the united states senate, mitch mcconnell. [applause] >> america is a land of promise and opportunity. it is conviction that unites all of us americans, and one we'd repeat quite often. for too long in this country, that wasn't the case for a large segment of our population. for nearly a century after the civil war, african

americans were denied the most basic of american freedoms. intolerance and injustice was allowed to metastasize while many with the power to stop it weren't looking. or didn't want to. a pastor with a booming voice and a potent message help change all of that. wordsh the power of his and example, dr. martin luther king jr. made those who may have wanted to look away focus on what he once called the long night of racial injustice. he inspired a generation of young people to action. he confronted the defenders of segregation head-on.

not with violence, but with a argument, and an unwavering confidence in the justness of his cause. dr. king knew that his role was not just to expose or confront injustice. but to prepare the country to actually do something about it. by the time the civil rights act of 1964 past, the country was ready. thanks to him, and the many who took up the cause, convinced as he once put it is civilization and violence are at -- anti-pedicle. dr. king and his followers may have had to brave jail cells, fire hoses, and in the case of dr. king, pay the ultimate price , but the sacrifice was never in vain.

change came. when he led marches. people notice. -- when he led marches, people notice. convinced of the rightness of this cause, speaking truth for with those paid so dearly. he deserves as much credit as any president or senator for the passage of the landmark legislation we commemorate today. recognize bidding to those others who work so hard to make the civil rights act possible. johnson, kennedy, and and many senators whose role in the fight is sometimes overlooked.

every time i walk into my office, i'm reminded of the role of one of my predecessors, everett dirksen. [applause] and his famous words -- when the votes were secured for passage -- stronger than all the armies, he said, referring to victor has, is an idea whose time come. the time has come for equality of opportunity and sharing of inernment, in education, and employment, and it will not be stayed or denied. it is here, said everett dirksen. [laughter]

near that portrait hangs a portrait of my role model as a young man, john sherman cooper of kentucky. cooper was another republican who worked tirelessly to overcome the aggressive effort to derail the civil rights act. in theths, adversaries segregationist camp held up the on june 10, 1964, dir ksen and cooper finally prevailed. remember watching senator cooper round up the .ecessary votes it was a powerful memory and a powerful lesson in how determined men and women in the senate can achieve our founding purpose. at important moments in our history, the senate has served an outsized role in leading us

towards the more perfect union we all desire. i believe the senate can be that place again and that it must, if we are to stay true to the vision of the man we honor today. it's true that politicians sometimes need leaders like martin luther king to help focus their attention first, so we thank you, members of the king family, for giving us this opportunity to thank dr. king and thator that work thaty and for the ideal inspired him, which we all renew today. may we all continue to draw inspiration from the vision and andmemory of this great man from the leaders who helped to translate that vision into law. thank you. [laughter]

>> ladies and gentlemen, the majority leader of the united states senate, the honorable harry reid. [laughter] >> today, of course, we gather to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the civil rights act of 1964. for people in this historic building -- there are people in this building, this historic to pass, who fought this historic legislation. as we've learned, it certainly was a team effort. my speakers previous to speaking today have indicated that, and that is certainly the case. leadersenate, majority mike mansfield and his floor manager hubert humphrey worked

across party lines with republican leader everett dirksen and republican whip thomas key chill, overcoming every attempt to defeat this bill, and it went on for months. representatives, democrat emanuel sellers and republican charles hallock proved that equality need not be a partisan issue as they rallied their parties to support the civil rights act. the legislation had support from the white house. it was first championed by john kennedy who pushed across -- and pushed across the finish line by president lyndon johnson. appropriateould be for you to stand and be recognized as lyndon johnson's daughter.

we all thank those named and unnamed to help -- who helped craft and pass the civil rights act. as i said before, it was a team effort. refuse to let inequality continue in our great nation. the battle against racism in america wasn't only waged here in washington, d.c. the battle for civil rights was fought on bus rides through south carolina, mississippi, and even on the bridge in selma, alabama. john lewis, while still a teenager, worked alongside dr. martin luther king jr. he soon became one of the principal leaders of the civil rights movement.

when i say that john lewis and others fought for equality, let's take a look specifically at john lewis. scars of thes the vicious attacks perpetrated by racists. carolina,e in south congressman lewis was beaten for daring to enter a whites only waiting room. his freedom rides bus was firebombed by the ku klux klan. later on in the same trip, presidential congressman lewis was beaten by an angry mob. those are just a handful of examples of his struggle -- of the struggle that people went through. ago, i stood next to john lewis as we reenacted through him the selma march. he shared with us which cap -- what happened on that bridge that day and told us what , the police beating him and others.

course, suffered a fractured skull and nearly died. even in the face of such violence, john lewis never wavered from dr. king's resume -- revolution of nonviolence, and he never stopped fighting for freedom. he still hasn't stopped. [laughter] john lewis coordinated the mississippi freedom summer, a campaign to register black voters in the state of mississippi. he rallied young men and women to mississippi. those volunteers were arrested, beaten, and murdered, somewhere, but still, the movement did not stop. it kept moving. i was here in washington, d.c., working and going to school, when dr. king delivered his "i have a dream" speech.

i along with the rest of america was moved by his words. i'm still moved every time i hear that speech again and watch it again. later, i was back in nevada, my home. i was at the las vegas convention center where dr. king spoke. he rallied people of all backgrounds to "learn to live together as brothers, or we will perish together as fools." of course, i and us will never forget how dr. king gave his life for the cause of the quality. for those who fought for equality, for civil rights, congressman lewis, dr. king, and countless others, the scars of born and the pie sprayed -- and

the price paid for freedom and equality, it is for their sacrifice that we commemorate the civil rights act of 1964. [laughter] --[applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the speaker of the united states house of representatives, the honorable john boehner. >> in the fanfare of history, it's easy to overlook the small moments that make big things possible. 2, 1963.back to july let's go to piccolo, ohio. if you have never been, it's a in myand pleasant town congressional district.

it is not far from dayton where the rate -- the wright brothers got their start. flying into dayton that they was a man named bert marshall, the assistant attorney general for the united states. he was picked up by the son-in-law of the congressman that he needed to see, william mccullough, the top republican on the house judiciary committee. lough was a farm kid who went to a one-room schoolhouse, but he was also a world war ii veteran. the white house would try to rush them into something, and he would say, hold on. i'm just a country guy who is got to muddle along a little. without him, president kennedy had said, the bill can't be done. marshall is there on this urgent business. he is expecting to meet with mccullough straightaway. unfortunately, the son-in-law the congressman is busy.

they go out for a long lunch. the take a scenic tour of miami valley. when they get into town, mcauley is still with the -- mccullough is still with the rotarians. they went to the local hardware store. mccullough looked at the assistant attorney general ann says, i want to tell you two things. as longupport this bill as you commit the senate not weaken this bill. i kind of liked the sound of that myself. [laughter] two, that the credit for moving this bill is shared between both parties. i like the sound of that, as well. [applause] so, the deal was struck. a year later, when the final house pausedthe

for a standing ovation for william mccullough. ,here is no indispensable man but there is a common man, the one who makes no distinction between the assistant attorney general and the local rotarian. he doesn't use his status for personal gain. he uses it to serve others. thing isthe biggest the right thing. it isn't a household name, and it doesn't have to be. there notnd him right in the fanfare but in the fabric of history. medale is that this ceremony today serves to honor dr. king and all who set out to answer what he called the most urgent question -- what are you doing for others?

[applause]

>> ladies and gentlemen, founding director of the national smithsonian museum of african-american history and culture, mr. lonnie bunch the third. [applause] afternoon. the national museum of african american history and culture on behalf of the smithsonian institution is humbled and

honored to help reserve the legacy of martin luther king jr. and kuroda scott king by accepting into our care the congressional gold medal. there is little that i can add to the well-deserved accolades that have already been spoken, except maybe to offer my thanks on behalf of those of us who were too young to participate actively in the civil rights movement but who were the beneficiaries of the leadership and the courage of dr. and misses king. as a result of their marches in selma and birmingham and chicago , generations of african-americans have had the , marchingy to march in their university graduations. as a result of their sacrifices

and their commitment to a fairer america, many of us have experienced possibilities once unimagined. thanks to dr. and misses king, our lives and our opportunities were transformed, and america was made better. there really is nothing more powerful than a people, then a nation that is steeped in its history, and there are few things as noble as honoring all of our ancestors by remembering. with the acquisition of this medal, the smithsonian will ensure that as long as there is america, the courage, the impact, and the legacy of martin luther king jr. and coretta scott king will be honored, preserved, and remembered. thank you very much. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, please

stand as the chaplain of the -- as the chaplain of the united states senate dr. barry black gives the benediction. >> let us pray. gracious god, you created us to live in harmony. thank you for this opportunity to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1964 civil rights acts and to pot you miss me -- posthumously award the gold drum majors for justice and freedom, dr. martin luther king jr. and caretta scott king. empower us to work as did martin belovedtta to build a community where the brotherhood and sisterhood of humankind will

become a reality. andhe spirit of martin coretta, stir us to resist oppression with transformative love. in the spirit of martin and correta, inspire us to continue our commitment to nonviolent direct action. of martin and caretta, make us your active disciples who join you in your work of bringing deliverance to captives. selves us to our best with new strength and a hopeful faith, hastening the day when all of your children can join

hands and sing in the words of the negro spiritual, free at , free at last, thank god almighty, we are free at last! we pray in your sovereign name, amen. ladies and gentlemen, please remain at your seats until your row is invited to depart by a visitor services representative. thank you. c-span, the on homeland security secretary testifies about efforts to stop the influx of children at the

u.s. border. then speeches from candidates after the primary elections. later, members of congress mark the 50th anniversary of the 1964 civil rights act. wednesday, the house financial services committee holds a hearing on the reauthorization of the export import bank. that is the official export credit agency of the u.s. you can see the hearing live starting at 10:00 a.m. eastern on c-span 3. for the second day this week, a hearing on the influx of unaccompanied minors at the u.s.-mexico border. wednesday, immigration and customs enforcement officials testified about the 52,000 children that have crossed the border since october. live coverage of that judiciary committee starts at 2:00 p.m. eastern on c-span 3.

>> what i have right here is a partially processed plant that i've cut down into sections that are the right lengths for hanging. then i took off all of the big leaves, and those are sent to the kitchen to make edibles. they have a small amount of thc. they get that for a really good price. these little leaves are the tight turns. those can be dried and made into joints, or it can be sent to the places that make extractions, made into hash and that sort of thing. right here, we have the finished about. -- bud. this is sent to derive -- dry. looks atngton journal" the recreational use and legal sale of marijuana in colorado with guests from denver and your phone calls, live friday morning from 7:00 until 10:00 eastern on c-span. >> white house press secretary

josh earnest answered questions wednesday about the investigation into the missing iressa e-mails and responded to members of congress who say that it is part of a cover-up. here is a look. [video clip] >> i would like to jump to the irs. the commissioner has been testifying up on capitol hill, and one thing that he testified -- he said he didn't know about the lost e-mails from lois lerner until april, but then of course, the irs did not inform congress until june. is that an acceptable level of transparency, do you think? the commissioner of the irs knew about these e-mails, but congress wasn't told until june. >> i can't account for the timeline. the one thing that does seem obvious -- >> i'm asking whether that seems acceptable to this white house? >> i think the question is

begged by your construction, which is, what would congress have done if they had known about it in april or may or whenever the commissioner first learned about it? , theret of the matter is is not anything that is tangibly different about the situation right now. informationt that -- >> as i mentioned, you should check with the irs. is, our of the matter commitment to legitimate -- to cooperating with legitimate congressional oversight is pretty well documented. i will go through it again. >> are you saying darrell issa's oversight is illegitimate? >> i am saying that there are legitimate questions that can be raised about the partisan motivations of those conducting oversight. the fact of the matter is, there have been 17 congressional hearings into this matter, to in the last 17 hours, and three in the last 24 hours. they have had as many investigations into this in the last 24 hours as i have had

meals. that seems like a lot. 30 interviews with irs employees. if the written congressional requests. 750,000 pages of documents. after all of that, after three long congressional hearings in the last 24 hours, 0 -- that is the other key number -- zero evidence to substantiate any of the partisan republican claims. >> isn't the problem -- the problem is that you have a key figure -- >> i think you and i might have different ideas about what the problem is. i think the problem is, despite all of this, we have seen an unwillingness -- >> doesn't that sound like, the dog ate my homework? on the face of it, it doesn't sound credible. >> if you listen solely to the arguments that are offered up by republicans, you might have reason to question the credibility. i agree with that. the fact of the matter is, despite the failure of the hard drives, as has been well chronicled, the fact of the matter is 24,000 e-mails from

have beenperiod reconstructed and produced to congress. that is what we've been focused on. again, i understand why your eyebrows are raised when you see republicans on capitol hill suggesting that they -- that there are two years of missing e-mails. it's not true. a large chunk of arty been provided to republicans. when they say that, it is an indication that they are becoming increasingly desperate substantiate the conspiracy theories they have been propagating. the key number is zero. zero evidence to support the claims that are made by republicans. >> the president is comfortable with the level of disclosure? >> 13 months of congressional hearings. 17, including three in the last 24 hours. i think our record of cooperation on this is probably

something you are tired of hearing about. >> the white house is also comfortable with the people at tigda looking into the missing e-mails. >> they are the inspector general, and they are independent. i wouldn't render a judgment on their activities. i don't think he be appropriate for me to. >> since october, more than 52,000 unaccompanied immigrant children from south america have been taken into custody by u.s. customs and border protection. next, homeland security and fema jeh johnson administrator craig fugate testify about efforts to stop the influx. this hearing of the house homeland security committee is two and half hours. security will come to order. the committee is meeting today

>> the committee is meeting today to discuss the current opening statement. today on the southwest border we are facing an escalating refugee crisis. parents are handing over their young children by the thousands to cartels who are profiting by smuggling these kids to the united states. many are under the age of 10. including some barely old enough to walk. these children with no parents, relatives or legal guardians risk a perilous and sometimes fatal journey riding buses and trains from central america via mexico. as a father of five, it's unimaginable to me that what would compel a parent to risk the lives of their children on such a dangerous passage. not to mention the risk of sexual assault, exploitations and the potential to be trafficked.

when they arrive at the border, the children are simply turning themselves into the nearest border patrol agent. however, patrol stations are not set up to handle this massive and growing number of detainees. let alone children. shelters have been established like the one at lackland air force base in san antonio. we've all seen the photos of hundreds of children piled on top of each other, and the flow shows no signs of abating. every member of this committee including myself is gravely concerned about the safety of children, no matter where they come from. since october, 52,000, 52,000 unaccompanied minors have crossed into the united states from mexico. nearly two-thirds of those cross through the rio grande valley in texas. cdp estimates that next year more than 150,000 unaccompanied children may attempt to cross our borders.

this is a crisis. it's a crisis that's been in the making for years. one that we should have seen coming. but few concrete actions have been taken. the department of homeland security and the united states government as a whole has been slow to act, turning a blind eye to the warning signs. the tragic fact is these children are making a dangerous journey based on misinformation and the false promise of amnesty. the first step is for the administration to acknowledge the cause of this problem. no one questions the fact that there are horrible economic conditions and violence in central america. but these conditions are not new. what is new is the series of executive actions by the administration to grant immigration benefits to children outside the purview of the law. the relaxed enforcement posture along with talk of comprehensive immigration reform.

it is beyond dispute that such a narrative shapes behavior and encourages people to come to our country illegally. in fact, newspapers in el salvador and honduras seem to be encouraging youth to head to the united states based on these policies. in recent internal dhs surveys, these childrenry ve reveal that than 70% believe they are going to stay in the country. this administration should send an unambiguous message that those arriving will be promptly sent home. i, for one, do not want to see another child harmed because we have not clearly articulated the realities on the ground consistent with current law. yesterday i was glad to see secretary johnson's letter. an open letter to the parents of children crossing our southwest border, notifying them that there are no free passes