mr. mccraw, how high are the security risks and how can we mitigate it? mr. mccraw: they're substantial. until you secure it, you can't mitigate it fully. i know congressman connelly was involved of criminal aliens that come across and how do you keep them from coming back. the only way to do it is secure it. the way you do it is provide agents, technology, aviation assets and you -- unity of effort and work the type of programs that will deter criminal activity. that's the only way you can actually mitigate the risks. ms. acer: could i -- mr. chairman, could i just weigh in? mr. desantis: the gentleman's time has expired. we'll have votes here. let me recognize the gentleman from michigan for five minutes. >> thank you, mr. chairman, and thanks to the panel for being here. mr. judd, a constituent of mine who's a d.h.s. officer contacted me. mrs. walorski: he's been working -- mr. walberg: he's been working on the border. he expressed concerns about a policy, a -- with california and mexico where individuals who crossed the border illegally cannot be sent home

mr. mccraw, how high are the security risks and how can we mitigate it? mr. mccraw: they're substantial. until you secure it, you can't mitigate it fully. know congressman connelly was concerned about ms-13 and criminal aliens that come across and how do you keep them from coming back? the only way to do it is secure it. the way you do it is provide agents, technology, aviation assets and you -- unity of effort and work the type of programs that will deter criminal activity. that's the only way you can actually mitigate the risks. ms. acer: could i -- mr. chairman, could i just weigh in? mr. desantis: the gentleman's time has expired. we'll have votes here. let me recognize the gentleman from michigan for five minutes. mr. walberg: thank you, mr. chairman, and thanks to the anel for being here. mr. judd, a constituent of mine who's a d.h.s. officer contacted me. he's been working on the border. in california. he expressed concerns about a policy, a -- with california and mexico where individuals who crossed the border illegally cannot be sent home but are proc

mr. mccraw, five minutes. mr. crawford: yes, sir, steve mccraw. mr. mccraw: yes, sir, steve mccraw. thank you, mr. chairman. thank you for the opportunity to testify today. i want to echo a few comments that the chief made. but i would be remiss of two things. i didn't, first, mention the governor's comments yesterday. on the aftermath of the brussels attack, the cowardly attack by terrorists. he pointed out that our hearts and prayers are with the brussels victims. our minds must realize the consequences of open borders. and a resolve must be security. clearly the governor and the texas state legislatures understand that this scope and magnitude of the threat and vulnerability to texas and the rest of the nation. what happens on the texas-mexico border doesn't just affect texas or even just the border region. it affects the entire nation. whether it's transnational crime or a national security threat. clearly, special interest aliens are a problem. we've recognized that, this is not a new phenomenon. as the f.b.i. special agent in charge in 2002, we learned that we were -- border pa

mr. mccraw, how high are the security risks and how can we mitigate it? >> they are substantial and until you secure it, you can't mitigate. concerned about the other criminal aliens who have come across. how do you keep them from coming back? we have to secure it and the movie secure it is by providing more additional agents, technology, aviation access, unity of effort. that is the only way it is going to be able to actually mitigate the risk. >> mr. chairman, could i just weigh in? >> the gentleman's time has expired. we are going to have both here. i want to make sure the others have time to ask their questions. let me recognize the man from michigan. >> thank you, mr. chairman. mr. judd, a constituent of mine who is a dhs officer contacted me. he has been working on the border in california. he expressed concerns about a he puts it, with california and mexico, where individuals who cross the border illegally cannot be sent home but will be processed through. and then released into the u.s. with court dates as long as 7-10 years down the road. are you

mr. mccraw, five minutes. >> yes, sir, steve mccraw, thank you, mr. chairman -- mr. chairman, members, thank you for the opportunity to testify today. steve mccraw, texas department of public safety. i want to echo a few of the comments the chief made but i would be remiss of two things if i didn't first mention the governor's comments yesterday on the aftermath of the brussels attack that, that cowardly attack by terrorists, he had pointed out our hearts and prayers are with the brussels victims, our minds must realize the consequences of open borders and resolve must be security. clearly the governor of the texas state legislature understand the scope and magnitude of the threat and vulnerability of texas and the rest of the nation. what happens on the texas/mexico border doesn't just affect texas or even the border region. it affects the entire nation, transnational crime, or if it's a national security threat. clearly special interests are a problem and we've recognized this is not a new phenomena as the fbi special agent in charge in 2002 we learned that border p

mr. mccraw, five minutes. mr. crawford: yes, sir, steve mccraw. thank you, mr. chairman. thank you for the opportunity to testify today. i want to echo a few comments that the chief made. but i would be remiss of two things. i didn't, first, mention the governor's comments yesterday. on the math of the brussels attack, the cowardly attack by terrorists. he appointmented out that our hearts and prayers are with the brussels victims. our minds must realize the consequences of open borders. and a resolve must be security. clearly the governor and the texas state legislatures understand that this scope and magnitude of the threat and vulnerability to texas and the rest of the nation. what happens on the texas-mexico border doesn't just affect texas or even just the border region. it affects the entire nation. whether it's transnational crime or a national security threat. clearly, special interest aliens are a problem. we've recognized that, this is not a new phenomenon. as the f.b.i. special agent in charge in 2002, we learned that we were -- border patrol was detecting, det

mr. mccraw: clearly we're concerned. the governor expressed his concern about the potential syrian refugees coming to texas. there's no adequate way to properly vet them and that's a concern from a national security standpoint. and he's made it clear. we're concerned to see transnational gangs, criminal aliens, cartel, cartel operatives and drugs, heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine infiltrate texas and really throughout the nation. you're not allowed to do what you're able to do and i would assume, mr. vitiello, as well? mr. mccraw: the problem is it hasn't been properly resourced over the decades. bottom line is border security hasn't been a priority, not been a concern as it relates to multiple administrations. in today's threat environment, you can't afford not to be concerned about border security. it impacts texas, public safety impact. it impacts us from a national security standpoint, homeland security standpoint and not just texas but the rest of the nation. 2014, as a result of the change in the president's policy

mr. stephen mccraw, director of texas public safety, mr. brandon judd, professor ting at the beasley school of law, and senior director of senior rights first. all witnesses will be sworn in before they testified. you can please rise and raise your right hand. do you solemnly swear the testimony or about to give will be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you god? please be seated. all witnesses answer and affirmative. in order to allow time for discussion, please limit your oral testimony to five minutes. your entire written statement will be made part of the record. mr. vitello, you're up. five minutes. mr. vitiello: thank you chairman , and distinguished members of the subcommittee. it is an honor to appear before you today to discuss the role of the united states border patrol in defending against threats against our border. during my long force me career more than 30 years in the u.s. portal, the environment has changed. not only the incentives, taxes, and capabilities of our adversaries, but also our resourc