Hirono to U.S.-Mexico Border to Inspect Facilities

Sens. Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawai‘i) and Tim Kaine (D-Va.) will travel to Texas on Friday, July 26, 2019, to inspect the conditions at border facilities and hear directly from migrants who have been detained by the Trump Administration.

The senators will tour border patrol stations in El Paso and Clint before visiting Casa del Refugiado, a shelter that provides migrant families and other refugees with meals, showers, and a safe place to stay.

Sens. Hirono and Kaine have been outspoken against the Trump Administration’s treatment of immigrant children. Both senators are cosponsors of the Stop Cruelty to Migrant Children Act, legislation that would create clear, non-negotiable standards for the treatment of children in the United States’ care, including ensuring that children are treated humanely and moved out of detention centers and into community-based settings as soon as possible.

Sens. Hirono and Kaine have also cosponsored the Central American Reform and Enforcement Act to tackle the root causes that are forcing many families from Central America to seek refuge in the U.S.

Earlier this week, Sens. Hirono and Kaine participated in a hearing where they spoke with medical, policy, and legal experts who have witnessed the terrible conditions at the border.