WASHINGTON D.C. – Today, U.S. Congressman Tony Gonzales (TX-23), member of the House Homeland Security Committee, delivered remarks and lines of questioning in a full committee hearing examining Secretary Mayorkas’ handling of the border crisis. In the hearing they heard from Rebecca Kiesling, a mother to two sons who died from fentanyl; Pinal County Sherriff Mark Lamb; President and CEO of Yuma Regional Medical Center, Robert J. Trenschel; and Associate Director of Immigration Studies at the Cato Institute, David J. Bier.

Watch Congressman Gonzales’ full remarks here.

Congressman Gonzales’ Opening Statement

Thank you, Chairman, I’m a retired Navy Master Chief. I spent 20 years in the military, I spent 5 years in Iraq and Afghanistan. I fought in two wars, I know what war looks like, I know what war smells like, I know what war feels like. We are at war with China. Every single day—I just got back from Taiwan, I spent 10 days in the Pacific—every single day China attacks us via cyber—and our allies. Every single day, China partners with drug cartels and they poison our children with fentanyl. This is intentional, you see it over and over again. And we have to act like we’re at war. We can’t have a presidency that views it as competition—it’s not competition when China is killing out children. It’s not competition when China is poisoning our country.

Congressman Gonzales Questions Sheriff Lamb:  My first question is to Sheriff Lamb, you know Arizona is very similar to Texas, this is our third year of this crisis. I feel as if Arizona is about a year behind, especially in some of the rural areas. I have a bill, the Security First Act, that designates cartels as terrorist organizations. In your opinion do you think that cartels are terrorizing migrants?

Congressman Gonzales Questions Sheriff Lamb: I sit on the Appropriations Committee… and I’ve pushed for three years to increase Operation Stonegarden funds. I know in Texas one of our counties, Brewster County Sherriff Dodson, he was able to add an extra deputy. And that area he represents, it's larger than Delaware. Imagine getting and extra deputy, but how is it in Arizona with Operation Stonegarden funds?