By Rep. Michael Rogers It's been over 1,100 days since the last Department of Homeland Security authorization bill was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. And as we approach the end of the 116th Congress, the chances grow thin of the Majority introducing legislation to provide the Department of Homeland Security with the resources and authorities is needs to stop the growing threats to our Homeland. I wish I could say I'm surprised Democrats have yet to offer a reauthorization package. However, this is the party that started out this Congress with calls to abolish U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The party that last year called the unprecedented migrant surge at the Southwest border a "Fake Emergency," and took half a year to vote on critical humanitarian funding to address the crisis. The party that turned a blind eye as violent mobs took over cities across our country. It's reached the point that now some on the left are calling for the abolishment DHS and the defunding of our police. It's clear the Democrats have caved to the radical, left-wing of their party. Unfortunately, doing so has left them incapable of building the consensus necessary to pass critically needed legislation to close the security gaps that leave our homeland vulnerable to attack. But Republicans won't let these gaps widen. My Republican colleagues and I are taking the lead to introduce a two-year, comprehensive reauthorization of the Department. The "Keep America Secure Act" will provide DHS the resources and authorities it needs to stay ahead of evolving threats and position DHS to be successful on new battlegrounds. The Keep America Secure Act: -Protects the health of critical frontline employees and ensures DHS can effectively carry out its vital mission during this pandemic.-Enhances border security by providing critical resources and authorities to increase manpower, improve border barriers, and modernize ports of entry.-Protects American research and innovation from foreign espionage.-Improves the nation's cybersecurity capacity by authorizing new approaches to enhance workforce development and retention at DHS and providing grants and other resources to state and local partners.-Ensures TSA has access to the funding it needs to carry out its mission, improves existing security programs, and reforms the security screening process to increase checkpoint efficiency and alleviate passenger stress.-Reauthorizes FEMA for the first time in 14 years and provides increased funding for critical state and local terrorism preparedness grants and other programs.-Reforms the DHS intelligence enterprise and focuses it on emerging threats and improved information collection, analysis, and dissemination.-Implements management reforms to improve accountability and oversight of taxpayer dollars. Unlike the Democrats' inability to come together, the Republicans on the Committee each played a vital role in the development of the Keep America Secure Act. I applaud my colleagues for their dedication and work on this legislation.Throughout the last year, the men and women of DHS have worked around the clock not only to manage a pandemic, but also to curb bad actors trying to take advantage of it. We owe it to them to pass this legislation. For Republicans, the security of our homeland has always been, and will always remain, our most profound commitment. Congressman Mike Rogers is a Republican from Alabama. He is the Ranking Member on the House Homeland Security Committee and a senior member of the Armed Services Committee.

By Rep Mike Rogers Nineteen years ago, America awoke on a tranquil Tuesday morning only to have that peace destroyed by terrorists. We pause today to remember the nearly 3,000 Americans who lost their lives on September 11, 2001. We rise to honor the brave first responders who ran into harm's way. We mourn with the thousands of Americans who lost loved ones that dreadful day. We stand with our troops who have taken the battle to our enemies. We remember those that gave the ultimate sacrifice in this fight. Every day is a reminder of the debt we owe to our servicemembers and their families. On 9-11, America promised to fight back against the incarnation of evil. Our military, intelligence community and law enforcement have done just that. We could not be prouder of their efforts and results, which have led to the death of Usama Bin Laden, the dismantling of ISIS, and the thwarting of numerous plots against the homeland. President Trump and his Administration have continued that work and made national security a focal point of his presidency. I'm proud to work with the President and his team to secure our borders, take out terrorists, and reclaim America's dominance on the global stage. But the battle is not over. Threats to our way of life come from every corner of the globe. Domestically and internationally, we've seen more threats to our nation in recent years than existed 19 years ago. Foreign countries, like Russia, are trying to interfere in our elections. Terrorist groups are exploiting social media to radicalize folks here at home. China is trying to steal our intellectual property -- including research to curb a global pandemic. Iran and North Korea continue to pursue nuclear weapons. Malign cyber actors incessantly attack our businesses, critical infrastructure and economy. Confrontations in space are no longer science fiction but a reality we must face. Congress must be ready to address these threats. As a senior Member on the Armed Services Committee and the Ranking Member on the Homeland Security Committee, I sit in a unique seat to see all the threats to our Nation and the strategies we are employing against them. I have dedicated my career in Congress to ensuring that we never see another 9-11. It is vital that the men and women fighting day after day to keep us safe have the resources to win the battles of today and tomorrow. For too many years, the Appropriations bills have missed deadlines. The House won't consider the Homeland Security Appropriations bill this year, again, because of tough political issues for the Majority. Congress must do better. We are failing those that protect us. We've made great strides in the years since the horrific terrorist attacks on our nation. We've increased our intelligence capacities. Our military continues to adapt to threats. Federal law enforcement is better equipped to deter criminal organizations, aggressive nation-states, mobs and rioters, and caravans attempting to flood our borders. I stand ready to work with all of my colleagues to equip and fund those that take the fight to our advisories. America is a resilient country. A country I'm proud to serve and represent in the U.S. House of Representatives. God bless those who are mourning today, and God bless those who ran into harm's way on 9-11. Congressman Mike Rogers is a Republican from Alabama. He is the Ranking Member on the House Homeland Security Committee and a senior member of the Armed Services Committee.

By Mike Rogers, Rep. Adrian Smith, Rep. Tim Walberg, Rep. Ann Wagner, Rep. Ross Spano, Rep. Dan Bishop House Democrats are so obsessed with impeaching President Trump and trying to undermine the Trump administration that they are doing nothing to fix real problems Americans care about, like border security. In fact, House Democrats are so determined to undercut the president's agenda that they refuse to recognize the national security vulnerabilities on our southwest border. We saw these vulnerabilities firsthand as part of a trip last weekend to the Rio Grande Valley, the most trafficked part of the border. The Rio Grande Valley was at the heart of the spring migrant crisis, accounting for nearly half of the families and children law enforcement apprehended in the past year. To paint a fuller picture of how cartels, gangs and other bad actors are taking advantage of weaknesses in the Rio Grande Valley, here are a few recent examples. In only three days last week, law enforcement seized nearly 1,000 pounds of marijuana worth over a quarter-million dollars. In a five-day period last week, agents interdicted more than $3 million worth of cocaine. Border Patrol agents arrested known members of the MS-13 and the 18th Street Gang in the sector earlier this fall. The area is also a hotbed for human smuggling. Last month, agents stopped four separate smuggling attempts, catching a total of 28 illegal immigrants, including five Chinese nationals. These are only examples of what law enforcement was able to accomplish. Securing the Rio Grande Valley is one of President Trump's top priorities. Fortunately, we're making progress in achieving that goal. The administration is in the process of building more than 100 miles of a border wall system in the region, updating inadequate barriers and filling gaps in existing wall -- all making it harder to cross undetected. Our group was among the first people to see new construction in areas where no wall existed before. This new wall is made of steel bollards filled with concrete and designed to make it extremely difficult to defeat. It's also equipped with sensors and cameras. Additionally, the administration is building a levee wall system in floodplains to stop illegal traffic and help manage flooding. We know that walls work. Illegal traffic has dropped at least 90 percent in San Diego, El Paso, Tucson and Yuma since wall went up in the 1990s and 2000s. In addition, agents and operators in the field -- as well as Department of Homeland Security leadership -- have consistently told Congress that building walls is a crucial part of securing the border. We also visited facilities that housed a record number of migrant families and children who arrived at our border this year. We saw the Rio Grande Valley Centralized Processing Center, which was designed in 2014 with this demographic shift in mind. This facility is much larger than Border Patrol station facilities. It was staffed with personnel trained to care for children and stocked with necessary supplies like snacks, children's clothing and diaper-changing stations. Thankfully, President Trump and his administration have acted to stem the flow of migrants that overwhelmed these facilities and drained resources and personnel from across the department. The administration secured critical agreements with Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador to improve security cooperation across the region and reduce exploitation of our immigration laws. While the administration has successfully reduced border apprehensions in recent months, we are still stuck working with a broken system that only Congress can fix. On the border, we heard time and time again from law enforcement that legislative fixes are needed to improve border security and stop the exploitation of our immigration laws. Regrettably, House Democrats have no interest in closing loopholes that smugglers, criminals, and cartels are abusing at the expense of vulnerable children and families. On top of that, government funding talks have stalled over Democratic opposition to future border wall funding. Border security and closing immigration loopholes used to be bipartisan priorities. Even President Barack Obama supported securing the border. In fact, the Obama administration bragged about its efforts to crack down on illegal border crossings. In 2014, Obama said: "Our message is absolutely don't send your children … on trains or through a bunch of smugglers. That is our direct message to families in Central America … if they do make it, they'll get sent back." The only thing that has changed is that President Trump was elected on a pledge to secure the border. Now, instead of working on a bipartisan basis to both secure the border and prevent a humanitarian crisis from happening again, House Democrats are focusing all their energy on trying to impeach the president. It's shameful that they are putting a partisan exercise over our national security.