Rep. Buck McKeon

This week the House made tremendous strides in addressing some of the top policy concerns facing our country. From shoring up highway and transit programs, increasing accountability at the VA, and addressing the humanitarian crisis at the Southern Border, House Republicans are producing real, substantive solutions for the American people.

I’ll begin where we left off last night with votes on two bills to end the surge of unlawful immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico border that has been exacerbated by executive overreach and misguided policies.

The first bill, H.R. 5230, will help bolster our border security and prevent future endangerment of Central American children and families. Alongside my House colleagues, I voted to provide supplemental funding for our Border Patrol and National Guard to ensure that they have the necessary resources to enforce our immigration and customs laws while also providing humanitarian assistance. This legislation would untie the hands of our Guardsmen and CBP agents in their pursuit of smugglers by ending the prohibition of pursuing and apprehending criminals who exploit our laws on federal lands within 100 miles of the border.

As the Chairman of the House Committee on Armed Services, I am also happy to see that unauthorized aliens would no longer be placed at military installations if their housing and care would displace members of the Armed Forces serving on active duty or in Reserve or Guard components, or interfere with their activities.

Additionally, this bill will remedy problems in the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 so that all unaccompanied children, regardless of country of origin, are treated the same as kids from Canada and Mexico for the purposes of removal. Unaccompanied children will receive emergency care and temporary shelter, and those with credible fear of persecution or victims of trafficking will be seen by an immigration judge within 14 days of their initial screening.

Equally as important, enforcement personnel will now have the much needed discretion to identify folks who are not in need of asylum and in turn must be repatriated to their home countries. In doing so, this bill will eliminate the magnate of misinformation and permissive culture that continuous to entice Central American parents to send their children on the perilous journey to our border by providing for swift, humane processing and deportation.

The second bill from last night, H.R. 5272, will guarantee that President Obama cannot take future unilateral actions to shield entire categories of deportable aliens from removal or authorize work permits for individuals unlawfully present in the United States. It does this by preventing the Administration from issuing new memorandums or policies with the effect of authorizing a deferred action program for a class of aliens, thereby prohibiting President Obama from simply extending his “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals” (DACA) program in the future.

While we are sure to face intense headwinds from the entrenched opposition in the Senate and the White House, Republicans in the House of Representatives refuse to stand idly by while our nation’s sovereignty and national security is at stake. Our bills will prioritize removal and deterrence, increase cooperation with the governments of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, and protect our communities from violent criminals and those with drug offenses from seeking asylum.

Switching gears, I was proud to cast my vote this week on a pair of bills that will go a long way toward strengthening our economy and ensuring that Veterans are honored for their service. Despite some opposition in the Senate, these bipartisan, bicameral bills are currently awaiting President Obama’s signature.

The Veterans’ Access to Care through Choice, Accountability, and Transparency act of 2014 is a vital piece of legislation that will create 27 new VA medical facilities and expand care for Veterans at non-VA clinics and hospitals. The bill will also hold senior managers at the VA accountable by empowering the VA to fire executives who are complicit in cover-ups or illegal activity.

It is inconceivable to me that, in a nation that holds its military in such high esteem, we would abandon the brave men and women who have honorably sacrificed so much to preserve our freedom. It is incumbent upon us, as Americans, to stand with our Veterans in their moments of need. When their country came calling upon them to take up arms against those who would do us harm, they did so willingly and without reservation. We owe it to them to return the favor, and by providing access to quality private care, we are taking steps to hold up our end of the bargain.

On the transportation front, my House colleagues and I passed a bill that will provide $10.8 billion to shore up the Highway Trust Fund through May of next year. This legislation will provide some much needed certainty for state road projects by ensuring the Trust Fund’s solvency and guaranteeing reimbursements. While the Senate sought a riskier, shorter-term alternative to the House passed Highway and Transportation Funding Act of 2014, our bill serves as a better foundation upon which we can build toward a longer-term solution in the next Congress.

Last but certainly not least, Congress took decisive action last night to stand should-to-shoulder with Israel in her fight against Hamas. Republicans and Democrats came together to approve $225 million in emergency funding for Iron Dome batteries and interceptors, which play a critical role in defending the skies above Israel protecting Israeli citizens from rocket attacks.

As we enter the district work period, we do so having preserved infrastructure projects and jobs, improved and expanded access to quality health care for Veterans, strengthened our ally Israel, and provided leadership and solutions for the crisis at the border. These are consequential policy achievements; however we are nowhere close to the finish line.

I look forward to building upon these successes in my remaining time in Congress, though I know it won’t be easy. Worthwhile things never are.

I wish everyone a safe and enjoyable remainder of the summer, and I’ll see you around this August.

U.S. Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon, R-Santa Clarita, is chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.