U.S. Senator Katie Britt Joins America’s Newsroom on Fox

'It is absolutely a dereliction of duty for us to not get in a room and actually try to find a pathway forward.'

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala.) joined America's Newsroom on Fox to discuss Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding negotiations and President Trump's nominee to lead DHS, Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.).

On Democrats still refusing to sit down and negotiate to find a pathway forward:

"Unfortunately, it's been [47] days since we passed the last CR. And yet in that [47] days, we haven't had Democrats sit down with us one time. Look, I know I have colleagues on the other side of the aisle that want to find a pathway forward. And what I would encourage them to do is get in a room with us and actually have that conversation. Bill, you can't say you want to rein in ICE, but yet not come to the table to do it. Every one of my Democratic colleagues know that ICE and CBP continue to operate. They're just not operating with the guardrails that they say they want. So, I would think if they were actually being honest about what they want to see happen, they'd come to the table and talk about that.

…

"You have TSA officers and agents that are going without a paycheck. Democrats are grandstanding but yet refused to get in a room with Republicans. So, look, I'm going to continue to work on that. I feel hopeful that we'll have an opportunity to sit down with Democrats, and I genuinely believe (that), Bill, that if we sit down with them and start that dialog, we'll find a pathway forward. And that's what we owe to the American people and it's certainly what we owe to every single person in DHS that raise their hand to protect our country."

On members of Congress continuing to receive a paycheck even as the hardworking men and women of DHS have gone weeks without pay:

"Look, I think it's really rich that we have all of these Senators … that refused to get in a room and talk about a pathway forward to pay the people of Homeland Security, but yet they're taking a paycheck themselves. I think now is the time to get serious about that as well. I don't think members of Congress should be taking a paycheck… if people who have stepped up to serve our nation in any capacity aren't getting one themselves … So, let's get in a room, Bill. Let's talk about it."

On her support for Senator Mullin leading DHS and implementing President Trump's policies to keeping Americans safe:

"There is absolutely a pathway forward and you even saw some of that yesterday from the soon-to-be secretary of Homeland Security, Markwayne Mullin. I think he laid out a number of things where he talked about cooperation. He talked about empowerment of local law enforcement officers. Look, we are serious about this from the top down. The directive is coming from the President. He wants secure borders. He wants safe streets. He wants us to enforce our law. And he wants us to do it the right way …

"[W]hat you saw from Markwayne yesterday was exactly right. Politics have to be put to the side. We owe it both to the men and women who are serving in DHS, but importantly to the men and women of America that we need to keep safe and secure. We know there are heightened threat levels across our nation, and we've seen that come to fruition. It is absolutely a dereliction of duty for us to not get in a room and actually try to find a pathway forward. Stay tuned. Because I am on that. I am trying my hardest."

You can watch the full interview here.

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