Wes Hickman (202-224-5972) or Kevin Bishop (864-250-1417)

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) today voted against invoking cloture on the DREAM Act.  Sixty votes were necessary to move to consideration of the legislation and the vote in the Senate was 52-44.  He made this statement following the vote:

“First, we must show the American people we are serious about securing our nation’s borders. 

“I have twice introduced and passed legislation through the Senate providing $3 billion for improved border security.  There is no doubt we need more boots on the ground, more miles of fencing, better technology which acts as a force multiplier, additional detention beds, and unmanned aerial vehicles at the border.  I have and will continue to push for adoption of the Graham Amendment until it is signed into law by President Bush.

“Regaining operational control of our nation’s borders is a gateway to further reforms of our broken immigration system.

“I’m sympathetic to the concerns expressed today on the floor of the Senate, but I believe the legislation was poorly drafted and in need of further amending.  Additionally, Majority Leader Reid made clear that he was not going to allow any meaningful changes to the DREAM Act, a legislative process I found to be very unfair.  Without assurances border security would be addressed, I would not vote to proceed to this matter. 

“There is no reason to abandon our border security efforts at this critical moment in time.  We need to be focused on securing our borders to ensure people who come into the country do so legally.”

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