newYou can now listen to Fox News articles.
At our farm, we sow seeds when it's time to sow. When it's haying time, we put out the hay. Then, when it's harvest time, the crops are brought in. We don't sit back and expect someone to do the work for us. In true Montana fashion, we roll up our sleeves and get to work.
This is the kind of spirit that small business owners, farmers, ranchers, and hardworking Montanans across the state bring to their work every day. And that's the kind of thinking that our colleagues in Congress and President Biden urgently need to put on the table to secure our border.
Montanans know that what is happening right now on our southern border is a serious problem, plain and simple. Allowing anyone to enter the country, regardless of political beliefs, without proper vetting and legal process undermines national security.
Thousands of migrants, most wearing thermal blankets, wait to be processed at a U.S. Border Patrol transit center in Eagle Pass, Texas, on Dec. 19, 2023. (John Moore/Getty Images)
We know that drug cartels exploit these gaps in border security to smuggle drugs and people across borders. That has to stop.
14 House Democrats join Republicans in condemning Biden for border crisis
For too long, Congress has been reckless in securing our southern border, with some even refusing to fund it. It's time to stop kicking and get the job done.
When I talk to sheriffs and mayors in communities large and small across Montana, they all say the situation at our southern border and the deadly fentanyl crisis are having a dire impact on the people they are sworn to protect. You can save lives by taking action now.
When I told President Biden and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas that what was happening at our southern border was unacceptable, I told the stories of impacted Montana families and local government budgets being stretched thin. , and our national security comes to mind.
Johnson says Vice President Harris wants 'lawlessness' at border after attacking Republicans on immigration crisis
That's why I urge Senate leaders of both parties to prioritize resolving the border crisis. I think solving the border crisis should have stayed in Washington and worked on it during the holidays.
The lack of urgency from our colleagues on both sides of the aisle to address this crisis is frankly disturbing.
When I visited the southern border, I stood on a section of the wall near McAllen, Texas, and spoke directly to Border Patrol agents, only to be told they needed additional personnel and resources to accomplish their mission. Ta. That's why I've worked with Republicans and Democrats to introduce bipartisan legislation like the End Fentanyl Act and the Anti-Drug Act..
For more FOX News opinions, click here
These bills would give law enforcement the tools and funding they need to tackle this crisis head-on. But politicians who like to score cheap political points and play border politics have sabotaged our bipartisan efforts.
It's time for Congress to stop playing politics, put its weight behind its shoulders, and use common sense proposals like the one I've proposed, and others, to finally create a border agreement that protects our state and country. I did.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Simply put, securing our southern border and protecting our country shouldn't be a partisan issue, it's an American issue. Montanans of all political stripes understand that our current system is broken. They want to know why the leaders they have elected are so dysfunctional that they cannot fix it.
My message to the President and my colleagues in Congress is simple. It's time to stop pointing fingers, stop using borders as a political topic, and roll up our sleeves. I am committed to working with anyone, Republican or Democrat, to secure our borders and reach deals that protect our state and country.
Click here to read more from Sen.John Tester
