Maryland Officials Respond To President Trump's Border Security Remarks
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Maryland officials responded Saturday to President Trump's latest remarks on border security.
President Trump made an announcement Saturday in which he proposed a new deal on immigration.
He offered millions in immediate humanitarian aid and improved drug detection technology at legal ports of entry. He also proposed hiring 2,750 new border agents and 75 new immigration judge teams to help reduce court backlogs.
The president also said he would extend protections for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and the legal status of Temporary Protected Status holders.
Governor Larry Hogan tweeted that President Trump and congressional leadership need to restart direct negotiations and re-open the government.
Sen. Ben Cardin said the following:
"Let's reopen the government and then have a debate about the president's ideas on border security and the many proposals that have circulated through Congress and even passed either the House or Senate. We all want secure borders; we all want protections for the Dreamers and TPS recipients; we all want comprehensive immigration reform; but government must be reopened first. Unfortunately, in a speech called 'a plan to reopen the government,' we heard very little about the urgency of reopening the government. There are 800,000 federal employees and millions of service contractors who deserve to be on the job and paid for their hard work. The American people deserve to have their government fully functioning again."
Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen also tweeted that the government should be opened immediately.
The government has been shut down for 29 days as of Saturday. It is the longest government shutdown in U.S. history.
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