live coverage on c-span. the senate is coming in briefly in 25 minutes. we will simulcast that. as we continue to take your phone calls and comments up until noon eastern today on day three of the government shutdown. republicans call (202) 748-8920 for federal workers the line is (202) 748-8922 all others (202) 748-8923. we appreciate you holding. we will start off with bailey on the republican line in texas. thank you for waiting. caller: morning. crybaby liberals are the only reason they want all these illegals and is so they can get the votes off of them when they give them money and

hospitalization and everything now sit is ridiculous the way they are doing it. it is the federal government's job to keep the illegals out. the democrats don't want to do that so they can get violence. [indiscernible] -- host: you are from a border state. how bad is the immigration problem in your area of texas? caller: in houston we have two or three shootings a week, multiple shootings, multiple people. it is usually illegals that are doing it. they give down and they can't help but she did. host: that lunch meeting with president trump, tweeting 95% of border security -- say they agree with physical barriers and assist in the performance of their duties. we can have a strategy to protect the border. we hope he will keep the country

safe like e-verify or sanctuary city and ending chain migration. this is a federal worker in washington, thank you for waiting. because i knowre that this issue with both sides was solved years ago, two years ago. since they were already solved i am saying why is the president coming up with these billions of dollars he needs. -- keep theing is immigration entry like it is how they can come in through more theortable -- when you have president wanting to put up a wall, he wants to put up a wall and cost american dollars to be inen -- we need our reserves case we have something catastrophic like 9/11. this issue right here is because the president wants to get this

done we have both sides that have issues. maybe it is because the is trying to use this money and this money is not for us to put up a wall when we have security and military that can come. already have a salary on the federal government dollar, why should we pay more dollars to kick off reserve money. i can't agree with the president over this. transportation and i don't know why the president is going to -- going through this matter. host: to update where we are the senate last week agreed to a measure with $1.3 billion in border security but not new wall funding. when it came to the house last thursday, house republicans

protested about it and said we are going to add $5.7 billion for the border wall and another 8 billion or so for disaster relief. that is where it stands with the senate taking up that measure technically but they are going to make changes to it, negotiations of that happening off the floor throughout the weekend. philadelphia also on our federal workers line, lynn, go ahead. i am a federal worker affected by the shutdown. my agency does not have a budget and i don't get a paycheck. i am so sick and tired of hearing people across the country with their opinions, i am affected. if we want to make a change with the government first of all i say to democrats and republicans and the president stopped all three acting like babies. do what you need to do. if the 5 billion is too much

then do an analysis, do a procurement analysis to find out how much it will cost. who also a part of the afpg represents the border patrol and i want every american to understand that border patrol agents have a lot of work and a lot of stress. they get beat up and shot at. let's not forget them at the border. it is a two way street. will tell you all i'm sick and n tod of being a paw what our elected officials do. they will get paid but i will not. host: tell us the agency or department you work for. caller: i work for hud. is next on our others line. caller: i am against having a wall.

i never voted for it and i don't believe that the people elected trump. i don't believe that physical barriers are the right solution and i think that there are better ways to secure the border. i do believe that we do need to have more security with better technology stricter rules and more manpower. affectve the wall would biological and ecological diversity that a lot of people don't realize. most of the criminals and rapists, shooters seem to come from within our country than from without our country. shutdown isve this a presidential manipulation and it is very costly. we have been through trillions of dollars of national debt and now he wants 5 billion something dollars for a wall that has

already been shown it is not going to be that effective. if there is a government shutdown, and i think congress senate and the house and the president should ago without pay, not the workers. is that theroblem gop has not been able to come up with a working budget. crisis isr biggest not the wall come our biggest the president is a power monger and he is handing us over to russia and saudi arabia and other oligarchs. and isolating our country from allies. host: let's hear from cincinnati, greg is a federal worker. caller: hi, how are you. happy holidays. host: thank you. my wife and i are both federal employees, we are both non-exempted therefore we are

shut down until further notice. the first time we are both going through this at the same time. i would like to say, if anyone would like to know, federal employees as a whole really wish we were back at work for the american people. we don't want to see this happen. -- wee been fully funded would like to see the government operate fully funded the way it should. and not go through this kind of shutdown. how many of these have you gone through over the years? i have been in the government since 1996. just after the clinton administration -- clinton gingrich shutdown, i missed that one personally. i went through the long one on 2013 for 16 days.

my wife was not in the government at that point. she came in about 2.5 years ago. ,ost: when these things happen you don't get a paycheck come at least the next day period. today and tomorrow are federal holidays. caller: right. a bills has to authorize and the president has to sign a bill for authorizing federal employees to get paid for any time they worked or did not work. if they worked they get paid after the appropriations's past. if they did not work they have to pass a separate bill to ensure -- there is a senate bill thatouse bill on the floor stuck in committee or whatever have you possibly. employees that were shutdown that did not work. even if they approved that the appropriations still have to be

passed for those employees to get paid. that is the problem. for 30 days on which i think is the maximum allowed by law, a lot of federal employees around this country will not have a paycheck whether they worked or not until it opens backup. host: hang in there and thanks for sharing your situation with us. workers, for federal we welcome -- that line for federal workers (202) 748-8922 we welcome your comments on facebook. and dance toa song make his base feel like he cares. " build the wall" says joseph. maybe more " government shutdowns can whittle the government back down to its constitutional size." in new york, karen. a federal worker, go ahead.

think this isly i a battle of egos. i don't think this has anything to do with the wall. in previous administrations we had walls or some type of barrier that previous administrations had. i think since his it is a battle of ego with democrats and the republican party nobody wants to come to an agreement at this point. the money that president trump is asking for is basically a drop in the bucket compared to the hundreds of billions of dollars they are allocating for other things. i am a federal employee and have been for about 35 years. considered during the shutdown on essentially employee so i will be working and going into the office but not getting paid.

road theyt down the will do as they did another shutdowns and offer retroactive pay for all of the other federal employees. my heart goes out to the federal employees, some are living paycheck to paycheck. it is going to be tough to not receive that biweekly paycheck. hopefully this will end soon. they need to come to an agreement for the american people whether it will be less ,oney allocated for the wall maybe the republican side will agree a little bit or give the e democrats what they want. there has been such disdain between the two parties regardless of who you support. they really need to do their job as we do as federal employees

and come together. i cannot go to work and say i want to this and i am not compromising. that does not happen with federal employees. you have a job to do, do it. >> you mentioned you are a 35 year federal employee talking about people living paycheck to paycheck. have you because of the tendency of the federal government to shut down from time to time, this is the third time this year , have you had to set aside fory as a rainy day fund weeks or days like this? >> yes, i do and i am able to do that, thank god. others may not be able to do that. we have a lot of federal level theyat the pay are at they live paycheck to paycheck. when your rent payment comes in or you need gas in your tank, if this goes on beyond the weeks there are people that will be a

tough spot. my heart goes out to those people. we go to our republican line with steve from pittsburgh. this is ridiculous. you are hearing from these federal employees and everything, this is minute on how big the system is that needs fixing. they have to go. , if you ares hiring getting a paycheck go to mcdonald's. as far as these democrats, we need -- you won't give us money for the wall but you are going to pay trillions in syria and the middle east. where is your brain? as far as the numbers, mr. trump, great job. thank you and merry christmas. host: thank you steve, happy

holidays and merry christmas to you. our capitol hill producer reminding us it is day three of the government shutdown, president trump order the federal government closed prior to federal government funding expiring at midnight. workers were given today offer christmasy. the senate is in session very briefly today for a pro forma session. the next senate floor vote could be held thursday in to fund and reopen the federal government if bipartisan agreement with congressional leaders in the white house is reached or you you heard the debate on friday. that senators will not bring anything to the floor. the agreement was until something can be voted on and passed. , south in columbia carolina on the democrats line. caller: i'm calling because i support the democrats. and the wall situation. i can't understand how we can

peopleare going to fight from coming in when trump has invited russia in to take over america. i think the president needs to practice what he preaches. he wants russia to come over and take over america. the highest commanders who know the security of our country are walking out and he has nothing to say about that. when russia comes to invade, how can the president of the u.s. go and hold a private meeting with russia and we don't know what is coming out of that meeting. how come everything he wants he gets. i don't think we need to be aware of a wall we need to be worried about the invasion of russia and it is being handed over by our president, for him hotelsinue using his big

in russia and having all kinds of relationships over there. america is at stake. house needs to get in there and keep us from having another 9/11 or world war iii and look at him for who he is. he is a traitor of this country. host: david from ohio. hi there. caller: i have a question about the government shutdown. ,hen the government shuts down does everybody still get social security checks? host: it is my understanding that social security payments and government benefit payments will continue as normal. so the government shutdown, you still get your paycheck? you still get the monthly check, everybody does. that this is mind

about one quarter of the government, the veteran's apartment, military, defense department has been funded, a big chunk of health and human services also funded. those functions continue. the shutdown is affecting about quarter of the government, a fairly sizable amount. so you will get your checks, right? my understanding but you probably want to check with your social security office to make sure. from michigan we hear from brent. caller: hello, good morning. republicans are complaining about lack of cooperation from the democrats they seem to forget that when the republicaned congressman got together and said they were going to prevent obama from doing anything.

also, i don't believe in open borders. , i think you need comprehensive immigration reform and a give-and-take. toh parties need to bargain bring that about. also from the republicans i am not hearing anything about mexico paying for the wall. every time president trump called for the wall it was, who is going to pay for it, mexico. what happened to that? that's all i have to say. host: tennessee next. we hear from david in tennessee. good morning. caller: good morning and merry christmas to you and yours. why i am calling today is the border wall. my question is this, why for the last eight years before trump took over, the democrats was all

, and it is recorded on tv, that everybody was for the wall but now that trump is pushing the issue of the border wall they are backpedaling and don't want to cooperate. i think if democrats and republicans would get together with the president and do exactly what the president is trying to do that will secure fornation and our people our people and not everyone else. we are a nation of laws. by bille put in -- clinton and barack obama. now that president trump is in office nobody wants to follow laws. --ryone wants to get along host: the republican whip steve scalise on fox tweeting that our southern border is in crisis he tweets and our brave border patrol agents are being attacked. we need to give them the tools to stay safe while keeping us state.

a representative from the legislature in texas, chris turner, saying congressman sculley's i invite you to visit texas southern border i'm sure my college to represent that region will be happy to host you and while doing so disabuse you of the notion their districts are in crisis, spoiler, we don't need a wall. that from a legislator in texas. and federal worker in maine, frank. good morning. caller: good morning, how are you? [indiscernible] -- host: fine, thanks. caller: i want to wish you a merry christmas. host: same to you. caller: i have been a government employee for 35 plus years. army and united states the rest of the department of the navy. i get tired of all this political stuff going on.

i know when president trump was -- elected there was protests going on and it troubled me because i love my country and if i didn't i wouldn't have served most of my life. i had a dream one night that and i believed me god showed me in this dream that all this going on was the one that love america, all the that theg and violence ones that hate america are doing all the protesting and the ones that hate god and on the other hand the ones that were --oicing was host: frank, i'm going to let you go. a couple of minutes before the

senate comes in. we go next to eleanor in florida. good morning and merry christmas christmas to you and god bless everybody. i just happened to turn it on again i feel so bad for everybody that does not have a paycheck come again. they are going to try to move this as fast or they can i'm sure they will try to do something. i heard someone say something about the president shouldn't get paid. i don't know if i am wrong but i remember hearing that he does not take a paycheck? that is something i thought i would bring up. i supported trump. i know he is not a perfect person. god puts anometimes imperfect person in a job to be done that has to be done. this is a hard job and all presidents have a hard time. , let'swould love to see

go back to loving each other and having our two parties work with each other, which they haven't worked for so long. eleanor inis florida. this is from fox. he says his colleague reports senator pat roberts will preside over the pro forma session in the senate today. staying behind for pro forma duty on this christmas eve. let's go to shirley in smithfield rhode island. we may cut you off for the senate. go ahead. caller: i will be quick. i want to say that i think trump needs to go. he is not capable of governing it has been shown. he is capable of running independent this -- he is not capable of running independent businesses, he has been a failure in everything he touches.

>> the senate will come to order. the clerk will meet a communication to the senate. , septemberon, d.c. 24, 2018. i hereby appoint the honorable pat roberts, from kansas. >> the senate now stands

untilned until 4:00 p.m. december 27, 2018. when the senate returns thursday at 4:00 eastern, that will be on c-span2. until --ne hours left the phone lines, (202) 748-8921 four republicans, (202) 748-8920 four democrats, (202) 748-8922 that is for federal employees, (202) 748-8923 that is for all others. president trump, he is a

very rich president. if he wants that while so bad, let him go ahead and buy it. by the land that he is going to try to buy anyway. those two should be getting together. if he has money to try to get stuff in russia, so be it. that is all i want to say. host: the president at the white house, active on twitter. he said america is respected again. he said patrick shanahan, the deputy secretary of defense will take over january 1 for james mattis, who had been expected to stay through february. craig kaplan tweeting this , he calls on the

president to look closely at heather wilson for his that's -- next defense secretary. jim, good morning. jim, are you there? caller: i am sorry, i couldn't hear you. first of all, i am not a republican and i am not a democrat. in this election i would definitely be a republican. i am for the wall all the way. it is really easy. we say you can come in legally. there are people coming in that are killing families and just doing all kinds of stuff and i bet you those families are for the wall. it is sad that president trump has to fight, he has set to fight ever since he got into

office. people that don't like him don't like authority. people that don't like him don't like people smarter than them. the democrats and republicans should stop fighting. it is mainly the democrats. all they do is fight. he is president, respect to the president is. host: jack from wisconsin on the republican line. good morning. caller: i am a republican. during that time i noticed some things. when you are found to be in a , australia ory new zealand, if you are caught there is legally, within two days you are on a plane and you are out. they don't mess around. i remember years ago i was in traffic court in u.s.

there was an illegal alien. everyone else in the court new he was illegal. he didn't have a drivers license and he didn't have insurance. they let him go. there are laws in place that -- we are just not enforcing. is it while going to fix that? i don't think so. , buta doesn't have a wall if you go there and try to get a job illegally, they won't hire you. other citizens would turn you in. if we did things like that, we wouldn't be talking about a wall. host: we have a line set aside for federal workers, that is (202) 748-8922. host: genevieve in california. caller: good morning and merry christmas. i worked for the government allowed time and have been

through a few shutdowns. we were given warnings. people know it is coming and they don't prepare for it, so it is hard to blame trump or democrats or republicans if you know something is coming about, be prepared for it. sufferingyou are not as hard as people are saying you will. bless the president and i wish all the, as well as other republicans, democrats, that they can get it together. that is all i have to say. californiall stay in and hear from the democrats line. caller: how are you doing? all i am hearing about is a wall. what about the wall for the white racist groups that are harassing people?

what about that wall. they keep talking about these mexicans coming in here and criminals, but we have white racist groups that have been here. we need to get rid of them and all these other republicans talking about the wall -- nobody cares about those people. we want a wall to get these white racist groups out of here. florida,pensacola, this is the republican line. good morning. caller: good morning. under the obama regime, i think he ran on the premises of having a border wall and i do believe we raised over $50 million and gave it to the government through various sources and i would like to know what happened to that money? did he go onto many vacations and spend it all? probably. hillary clinton did the same

thing, she wanted a border wall. it seems like everyone has blinders on and forgets the past to quickly grade i would like to say, keep your eyes open people. if you miss one thing, you will miss a lot more than you thought. host: a new jersey senator of the i am thinking hundreds of thousands of federal employees at risk of losing their paychecks due to the trump shut down. house to getwhite a comment on the secretary of defense firing, but i got a message that they were unable to take my call due to a lack of funding. jim is on our democrats line in new jersey. caller: good morning and happy holidays.

i have been following this issue for quite some time. this whole immigration business started with president reagan, he allowed 2 million people who are here illegally to become citizens, which i at the time felt was the right thing to do. there has been no progress over the years with having real immigration policies put into effect. at a time when democrats and republicans agreed that we needed border security and a border wall, we need some kind of a barrier to keep people from just coming into our country. one of the gentlemen that you had on previously made a statement that if the employers wouldn't hire these folks, there would be no reason for them to come here. i am all for legal immigration, i am here for anybody who wants to come to our country for a better future, absolutely. we have to do something, we couldn't possibly higher enough -- youto man our borders

would be tens of thousands of people to do that. i don't understand chuck schumer's and nancy pelosi's position that we are not going to fund a wall but we are interested in other security issues. i don't understand what that means and i am a democrat. i feel we need proper laws and border security and, finally, can we have a conversation about a new immigration policy. host: new hampshire, andrew is next. caller: i was wondering what it would take to get to the point where we can have a conversation between the folks on the right who are so avid for the wall and the folks on the left who don't want to get into some of these situations that they find offensive or at least not worth discussing and just get to a point where we can actually have negotiations again, because it seems like half the time it is

caving and the other half it is like, give us all this or nothing. it seems one-sided these days. to reports,ing conversations are continuing off the floor. the vice president is being very active in that. obviously, no progress yet. we will show you some of the floor debate, the senate came into session. we will get back your phone calls shortly thereafter. objection. leag mr. president, -- mr. leahy, i realize the chair cannot respond but it's good to see my friend in the chair, not on a >> let me think for a moment,

which place we would rather be in seriousness, mr. president, today nine of our 15 federal departments and several dozen agencies have shuttered their doors. by doing that, they've denied vital services to millions of american citizens. since midnight last night, just a few days before christmas, more than 800,000 dedicated public servants and their families have been told not to expect their next paycheck for the foreseeable future. and there's one reason and one reason only. that our federal government has shut down today and countless americans are living with uncertainty. that reason is president donald j. trump. the president is holding the federal government hostage for $5 billion of american taxpayer

dollars for his unnecessary, ineffective, and expensive wall on the southern border. a wall, eventually, he repeatedly promised, gave his word to the american taxpayers that mexico would pay for it. now he wants american taxpayers to dig in their pockets and pay for it. the president's irresponsible behavior is astounding. his job like ours is to keep the federal government operating for the hundreds of millions of americans who depend on government services every day, from our national parks to housing services for the elderly, the disabled, our veterans. for assistance for our nation's farmers. in fact, two days ago, the

president signed the farm bill and praised his efforts. today he's precipitated a shutdown that shuttered the doors to the u.s. department of agriculture's field offices, the same offices that farmers are going to have to go to to understand this new law. but the worst part of all that is this was completely avoidable. we provided the president with several options to avoid this result. a case where he can't take yes for an answer. we offered to pass six full-year appropriations bills in a continuing resolution -- and a continuing resolution for homeland. or a continuing resolution for all the remaining bills. either of these options would have kept the government open.

they would have provided more than a billion dollars for border security, the very thing the president says he needs and cares most about. plus the fact signing them instead of having a needless shutdown would save taxpayers millions, even billions of dollars. but after rejecting both of these offers, the senate passed by voice vote a seven-week continuing resolution. this would give us more time to negotiate and avert this catastrophe. democrats and republicans came together to pass it. the president had agreed to sign it. we finally lad a path forward -- we finally had a path forward. but then fox news and the right-wing media, rush limbaugh

started criticizing. the president's ego won out over his duties to the country. his ego is so bruised, he reversed courses. he went back on what he agreed to and here we are, exactly where the president wanted to be, in the middle of a trump shutdown. and for anyone doubting where responsibility lies, let's recall the president has publicly called for a government shutdown. how many times over the past year? no fewer than 25 times. just last week he declared he'd be proud to shut down the government unless we capitulate to his demands. proud? i've been here with every president, republican and democrat, since president gerald

ford. it's one of the most reckless statements i've ever heard uttered by a president of the united states. and now he's made good on his threat. his pride has won out and the trump shutdown has begun. how long is it going to last? who knows? yesterday the president promised us it would last a long time. then he promised it could be a short shutdown. even this is behavior that is erratic. so how did we get here? is there a legitimate crisis precipitating the shutdown? is the president playing games with the lives and livelihoods of american citizens to solve some immediate problem that threatens our nation? no, of course not. in caving to the most extreme base, president trump is throwing what many of us have described as a childish tantrum

because he wants money to fulfill a cynical promise he made repeatedly on the campaign trail. more of a symbolic prize than any sensible policy solution. this wasteful wall, a wall incidentally he promised mexico would pay for, not the american taxpayers. this wasteful wall that he now wants to bill to the american taxpayers would do more to preserve the president's ego than would to protect the american people. but i believe it's a natural result of the president's years long vilification of immigrants, years during which the president rallied his base with falsehoods, fantasies where vulnerable women and children,

women and children are betrayed -- portrayed as hoards of gang members and terrorists invading our country. the sad reality is all of us republicans and democrats know many of these people coming into our country are fleeing desperate situations in their home countries and they're looking for sanctuary. they aren't coming here to per -- perpetuate violence. they're running from it. let me be clear. there's no crisis that requires us to build a 30-foot wall between us and our neighbors to the south. the president's hateful rhetoric about a crisis on our southern border does not reflect reality. at the end of 2017, a recipe for attempting to enter dropped to

lows. from 1.6 million in fiscal year 2000 to approximately 400,000 in fiscal year 2018, that's a 75% drop. not only do the facts on the ground not warrant spending billions of american taxpayer dollars on a big, beautiful wall as the president likes to call it, it's not who we are as a nation. we are a country founded by immigrants. my maternal grandparents came to vermont from italy. my paternal great-great-grandparents came to vermont from ireland or my wife's parents came to vermont from the province of quebec in

canada. we even look at our immigrant -- our immigrant founding of this country. then if we want to wall ourselves off from our neighbors, it's not only an expensive waste of american taxpayers' dollars, it's immoral, it's ineffective, it's an affront that everything this country is supposed to stand for. to build a wall, the president wants to seize land from ranchers and farmers in texas and other border states, seize land from farmers and ranchers in land that's been in their family for generations. he would need to construct walls through wildlife refuges and nature preserves, basically destroying them. ironically, we would end up walling ourselves off from the rio grande in the process,

essentially ceding the hoover to mexico. and after all that, and after billions of wasted taxpayer dollars, what would it accomplish? would it stop people from fleeing violence in their home countries and seeking sanctuary? no. would it stop drug smugglers and human traffickers from engaging in illegal activity? definitely know. as so many -- definitely no. as many have said, show me a 30-foot wall, i'll show you a 31-foot ladder or a tunnel. to address these complex issues we need real slogans, not bumper stickers, not angry tweets. not everyone agrees that we need to keep our border safe and secure. it's got to be smart border security, border security that

works, new technologies that has proven to work on the border, additional personnel needed. a 30-foot wall is symbolic and unneeded. even if we needed to build it, what is the rush? over the past two years congress has provided nearly $1.7 billion to build or replace fencing on the southern border. but the administration has hardly spent any of that money, and the projects it's undertaken have been handled in such a way they've ballooned in cost. we gave them the $1. billion. demanding now more. how much of the $1.7 billion did

they spend? six percent. six percent of these funds have been spent. one part of the rio grande valley that was supposed to cost $445 million will now cost the american taxpayers nearly $787 million, a 77% cost overrun, price tagmillions each and every month. you can't really trust the administration to be responsible with the money we've already provided, let alone trust them to spend responsibly the additional money the president is demanding. let's put an end to this nonsense once and for all. we have an easy way of doing it. we can finish six of the seven appropriations bills right now or we continue to debate these other issues.

these bills are the product of bipartisan compromise where republicans and democrats came together. they provide billions of dollars in new resources to address critical needs of the american people. they protect u.s. national security. these six bills that we've already agreed upon, republicans and democrats, would provide much-needed funding to help combat our nation's opioid epidemic, critical investments in infrastructure, help us rebuild our nation's crumbling roads, bridges, and highways, provide resources to protect the environment, to help ensure the water we drink, the air we breathe is safe and clean for this generation, for our children and for the next. and they support key allies and national security programs enable the united states to be a

global leader. our role is being increasingly challenged by china and russia. so i have to ask is the president really going to hold the american people hostage over a wall that he time and time again promised mexico would pay for? is he really going to force hundreds of thousands of federal employees, including the very agency he depends upon to carry owt his immigration enforcement policy, to work without pay over the christmas holiday? is he really going to tell millions of americans, including his most ardent supporters, that he could care less whether they're cut off from critical government services? you know, the president has apparently decided that fighting a symbolic fight for a shiny object is more important than keeping our government up and running for the american people.

it's the height of irresponsibility. negotiations with chairman shelby and leader mcconnell continue in good faith. i am here this weekend to continue and have talks with members of both parties. but we all come to the same conclusion. we can agree easily, republicans and democrats, but we can only succeed if the president decides to do what we've done, and that is put the country first. the president of the united states, he owes that to the american people. he owes reality ask the quorum l be vish rated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. perdue: here we are at approximately 2:30 on saturday afternoon trying to do the people's business in a situation that nobody wanted and because i

believe of political self-interests, we are in a situation right now where we are in what i would call a crisis mode of operation. we need to get a deal done. but i want to address a couple of topics today that are at issue here as we debate the funding issue which is at the crux of why we're here today and this weekend. our country was built on immigration. there is just no question about that. we are all direct derivatives in one way or the other. but i'd like to be very clear -- most of the people that are here in this country over the last two decades -- or two centuries came in legally. today we bring in 1.1 million people a year legally, mr. president. we bring about 70,000 people who have a job-related way to get into that -- our system. there are about 70,000 direct

family members. that's the spouse and immediate children. there are another 300,000 refugees and asylum seekers, mr. president. there is a rational reason that we should do that, and we have been doing that. today, every day, asylum seekers and refugees are permitted into our country. but, mr. president, there is another 800,000 that come in legally every year that the only reason they come in is because they have an indirect family link through generations to the 70,000 that come in and work. given that environment, mr. president, we also have a temporary work permit system here that again has over a million people in it every year. our country is the most welcoming fill anthropic country in the history of the world, -- philanthropic country in the history of the world, mr. president. just to think that protecting our borders as a hacial security issue is somehow hardhearted and

radical. no country in the history of the world has ever demonstrated that it was a radical thought to maintain and protect the sovereignty of their own country and their own borders. indeed, mr. president, there are only six reasons why 13 colonies came together in the first place in the late 18th century and form the united states of america. the number one reason articulated is to provide for the common defense of our country. president trump is leading right now in his first responsibility, and that is to protect every citizen of the united states of america. he's fighting for the american people. actually, that's how he got elected, mr. president. he got elected because he complained about the dysfunction in washington, about politicians, bureaucrats, and the media. mr. president, so did i in 2014, two years before president trump did. i believe that people are fed up with this dysfunction in

washington. but i want to reemphasize that what is at issue here is the protection of our sovereignty as a country, not to change the immigration laws. that's not what is at debate today. i want to remind everybody that just in this body, this year, 43 of my colleagues across the aisle, 43 in an immigration bill proposed by susan collins on this side, 43 democrats voted for a $25 billion border security package, mr. president. 43. i think president trump has demonstrated tremendous negotiating willingness over and over over this past year on this issue. but let's be clear what's going on. the flow of drugs and human trafficking at our border is completely unacceptable. everybody in this body agrees with that, demonstrated by the fact that 43 democrats actually

voted for a $25 billion border security package earlier this year. there is no way you can avoid admitting that. this has to stop. the undampenned flow of illegal drugs has created a crisis in our country. the fact that we sit here and are more concerned about the political realities in washington than we are stopping human trafficking across our southern border is totally unacceptable, mr. president. an open border goes against the very ideas of why our country was founded. it totally undercuts american sovereignty. the american people know that, and they are fed up with the status quo, and i can tell you firsthand so is president donald trump. the dems are very clear. my colleagues have demonstrated they prefer open borders, illegal drug transfers, and human trafficking to a

commonsense protection of our southern border. we know fences work. i have been to countries around the world where they are protecting their borders with simple fences, where they need them. we have a multiple approach to defending our southern border. we have many miles right now that already have similar fences up that deter illegal crosses. at the same time, this president has shown over and over again that he is workable with our colleagues across the aisle to find some common solution here that we can all live with. he's ready to make a deal today. in fact, right as we speak, the vice president and the president and the chief of staff are in the white house right now, the leader of the democratic party in the senate is right now negotiating. this needs to get done, mr. president. there's no reason. i have done dozens of these in my career, and there is no reason, looking at what is

important to both parties, there is no reason this can't get done. i believe the president's ready to make a deal and fully fund the federal government. the last 25%. let's remember how we got here. this body, the senate and the house this year did something it hadn't done in 22 years, and that is fund at least 75% of our federal government on time. that was by september 30. we are here at the end of the first quarter of our next fiscal year still trying to fund the last 25% because of this controversy over the border wall. the first number was $25 billion, as i said, that was agreed to by the other side. then there was another $5 billion offered up. lastly, the president, i thought, had a deal early this week with our colleagues across the aisle for $1.6 billion. that deal was taken away. we are right now experiencing the second schumer shutdown of

this year. the first was over the daca controversy. president trump took the democratic request for 600,000 work permits for an indefinite period of time and changed that and made an offer of 1.8 million daca recipients for a pathway to citizenship. he took a chance with the ultraright in our party, the conservative part of the party, he took a chance and stood up and said this is the right thing to do if it's paired with the right deal on the other side. i believe that there's no reason why we can't get this package done right now. i think the president agrees with that. i think the democratic leader agrees with that. but prior to yesterday for a few days there was no one talking. and i give mick mulvaney and the vice president a lot of credit yesterday. i know that the vice president was in this building until about 9:30 last night negotiating this. i just believe that it's time to

get this done. nancy pelosi in the house repeatedly said president trump couldn't get the votes from the house to pass a funding package that included these border security priorities. well, we now know she was wrong. the votes were there. the house has sent a bill back over here that has not only border security but relief package, a serious relief package for hurricane victims, disaster relief victims, and the wildfire victims in california. the u.s. senate should have included president trump's priorities from the very beginning. now this body has a chance to do the right thing. it's time to get this done, mr. president. we are here. let's get a deal, bring it back in here, pass it, get it back to the house, and let's stop this thissense. let's not yield to political self-interest on either side, mr. president. i implore all of us who have

influence with the people who are negotiating this to let's get beyond this. this is so close. there's no reason that we're sitting here letting america be nervous about whether we're going to get this done. this should have been done back in september, mr. president, as i said earlier. now let's focus on our national interests, the things we're all called to do in our oath of office. protect and defend the constitution of the united states. let's fully fund this government, the last 25%, move past this, secure our border, and provide disaster relief for the people who are in a timely need right now for us to do that. mr. >> live coverage of the senate on c-span2 and the house on c-span. it is christmas eve, technically

they three of the government shutdown. we will take your calls for the next 20 minutes or so. the numbers are (202) 748-8921 for republicans, (202) 748-8920 , (202) 748-8922 for federal workers and (202) 748-8923 for all others. todayesident will be need with homeland security officials today at 2:00 to discuss border security. we showed you the senate session earlier this half hour. pat roberts from kansas -- a politico writer tweeted senator robert said shutdown moving forward with no discernible and about jamesupset

mattis leaving. a federal worker in kansas. caller: im a federal employee. the sad part is i am required to work. i can't just go get another job. in three more years i can retire. that would be silly. i have heard people talk about, go to mcdonald's. i have to go to my job and work even though i am not getting paid. not only that, if they do decide to pay us, they pay us in a lump sum and we get triple taxed. it is the same as not getting paid. reiterateso like to what happened to mexico -- why are we talking about paying this at all? he ran on a platform of, mexico

will pay. thank you. host: we will go to kenneth in north carolina on our democrats line. and theim a veteran senator from georgia, i take it as an insult and for him to say the united states was built on immigration. i take that as an insult. he needs to come out of that bubble and realize u.s. citizens built the infrastructure of our country. one thing is for sure, would we get back to our basics, if you don't make it here, you can't sell it here, that is when we are helping each other as a whole. her some reason, our leaders have taken a blind eye to the fact that we are capable of

taking care of ourselves, with no countries help. why aren't they doing what they are supposed to do? host: a tweet from congressman jason smith saying every day that nancy pelosi and chuck schumer put partisan politics ahead of national security, i will be giving up pay. in salem, missouri, this is gary on the republican line. caller: good morning. spend trillions of dollars overseas for security but not for our own. a wall would not be to keep people out, it is to keep the from coming through the proper checkpoints.

i have heard nobody mentioned -- i haven't even heard you measure -- mention that last tuesday, it was on the ap wire and several other news agencies, how we $10.6 billion to mexico, honduras, guatemala and el salvador to help stem migration. $10.6 billiond and appropriated to them, how come we can't spend $5 billion for a wall? that is all i have to say. host: here is a democrat from illinois. caller: i really don't understand how the people of georgia elected senator david

purdue. the comments he made were outrageous. you don't stand there and say democrats are holding all of these important aspects of government away from the american people. thatis ridiculous, knowing we did have a bipartisan appropriation for border security is not only senator leahy but senator purdue said. guess what? said,s senator leahy donald trump didn't like what fox news said about that deal. he was going to lose the support of his space that got him elected. he took that deal off the table. publicly,hat, but he this is the most important thing that people want to disregard, is that he would be proud to shut down the government. if you have a president that is brought to shut down your government, then you have a problem.

liveswilling to put the and accomplishments that people have made through their work and success in this country on the line for petty squabbles. we are putting disaster relief on the line over a petty squabble over border security. why are we wanted to spend so much money on something we don't know if it will be as effective as we would like it to be? this is not a democratic shutdown. side tos were on the vote for that appropriation bill. this is a democrat fight to keep the government open and it is donald trump who essentially wanted it closed and he got what he wanted. i refuse to allow anybody to say democrats are responsible for this because we are in the minority. if donald trump wanted it passed, he could have passed it. host: if there chunk of the

government shutdown, over 400,000 workers, could be affected. the fda been straighter tweeted a couple things this morning regarded the fda's position over the shutdown. families should not have to wait to gain access to critical drugs because of a shutdown. the fda has possession of -- available tostaff quickly review and response to requests for emergency access to experimental therapies, even this weekend and over the federal holiday. thank you to the 17 dedicated employers in fda's division who are working through this weekend through the lapse in funding. in michigan, jeff is a federal worker there. caller: good morning. how are you? host: i am doing well. caller: i am looking out my

window and i can see canada, just a short distance across the st. clair river. we are so fixated on our southern border, i personally have tried to intervene when i witnessed human smuggling up this way. agencies and st. clair and macomb county and the hundreds of border patrol and protection people were able to lose a semi truck full of human beings. host: you have seen some of this yourself? caller: yes. , i heardand interstate yelling from a semi. i approached the semi and there

was a customs lock lying on the pavement. there was pounding on the side, calling human voices inside of the cargo. i went to a phone, i reached out to police authorities and time went by. they seem more fixated incoming and talking to me. host: who came to talk to you? the police are border patrol? caller: nobody. several days later, i was approached at my work by a customs official and i turned over the customs lock and got their business card, some type of field director for this region. in the meanwhile, i left the , i droveeft that site

over the interstate, i went back , the lock was still there, the semi was gone, i reached out and as for the authorities, the driver of the vehicle must have seen me, got spooked and got off the interstate. , where i saw stop him, got on the interstate and all these resources -- host: you are there in michigan? you are looking at canada this morning. general, how active is customs and border patrol in that area? do they have a large presence there? caller: yes, they do. they have numerous sites along the coast here in marysville, michigan, 20 miles north of me.

they have a headquarters, if you will, not sure of the proper would begy, but that your homeland security. we also have an active coast guard presence with a large coast guard session -- station just south of me. host: thank you for that. here is a view from canada. what is going on in washington? u.s. government shutdown enters their day with no urgency to reopen after everyone leaves town. tina is in montrose, california, republicans line. caller: good morning. the only thing i want to say is -- he has open borders.

[indiscernible] i am going to destroy them. pope, he workshe for everybody. host: mountain home, idaho, abdul, hello. caller: good morning. the holy read andanza, the holy bible scriptures. , learned thet revelations, that is the answer to all you need. host: let's check what members

are saying. for every federal worker patrolling our shores with the u.s. coast guard, hunting down terrorists or doing work none of us will ever know but from which all of us will benefit. i am sorry you are experiencing this avoidable stress. san diego, california, democrats line. let us notant to say fight with one another. i am sure we all have friends, coworkers or loved ones affected by this government shutdown. this isn't a house issue or a senate issue. let's not attack one another. it will the to open their eyes and realize this is solely a trump issue. he acts like a little kid who didn't get his way and he is throwing a trump tantrum.

our country cannot afford to repeat the mistakes of the past. trump is having is a form of slavery of the american people. we should not forget how hitler's came into power or fidel castro. if trump wants a wall, let trump fund a wall out of his own pocket. is tweetingesident about the economy, the federal reserve. problemed that the only at our economy has is the fed, they don't have a feel for the market and don't understand democrat shutdowns over borders. the fed is like a powerful golfer who can't score because he has no touch, he can't putt. democrats line. caller: i would like to thank

that federal worker up you calls ago on the northern border with canada. it is appalling, a keystone cops kind of thing, that i have heard has been going on at both borders. i'm sure a lot of people are trying to do their best but it is very discouraging, all the bad stuff that goes on. you might not like the back -- next thing i'm going to say noticed is ahave lot of concern about the federal workers and some of them are affected now. but every other day of the year, except when there is a shutdown, they have the most secure jobs in the universe. they are supposed to be public servants. what about the other people with less secure jobs, the people who don't have pensions to look forward to in three years? what about them? i am seeing a lot of concern about federal workers and they

are supposed to be serving us. i don't like the unitary nature of the federal government. they're all looking out for each other. indiana,tinsville, republicans line. you for letting me come onto your show. my point is on this border security, with the border security, we can protect our border security agents that patrol and everyone that is trying to keep this from happening illegally. if we put the wall up, then we won't have the people coming in. i support the wall, i support president trump. i would stick it start building it right now. thatroblem that we have is mexico would build it so everyone is falling onto that. president trump has found out it

will be more difficult than having to mexico pay for it. the fact is we still need this border wall because we have a bleeding into this country and people coming into this country, thinking this is the land of milk and honey and they are just coming over to get the milk and honey and most of them don't want to do anything for the milk and honey. more views get one from manchester, kentucky on our republican line. caller: thank you for taking my call. the border wall needs to be fixed. the immigration policy needs to be fixed. the democrats, nancy pelosi and chuck schumer, they are worried more about the illegal immigrants than the taxpayers of this country. that is to be fixed. the democrats, all they are after iser