Rep. Andrea Salinas Delivers Floor Speech on Border Patrol Arrest and Unconstitutional Treatment of Wildfire Fighter and Constituent
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Congresswoman Andrea Salinas (OR-06) spoke on the House Floor to call out President Trump and his Administration for the arrest and unconstitutional treatment of her constituent — a wildland fighter dispatched to Washington State to combat the Bear Gulch Fire.
Click here to watch Rep. Salinas’ full floor remarks.
A transcript of Salinas’ floor speech is available below:
Mister Speaker, I rise to call out the Trump Administration for their arrest and unconstitutional treatment of my constituent.
Last week, my constituent was working as a wildland firefighter to combat the Bear Gulch Fire when CBP stopped his crew and arrested him.
He was brought to the United States when he was four years old. The United States is the only home he knows.
For the past three years, he has bravely served as a wildland firefighter, putting his life on the line to protect us.
Arresting a firefighter–who is actively fighting a wildfire–does not make our communities safer.
For roughly 48 hours after his arrest, the Trump Administration violated my constituent’s constitutional rights. Despite requesting a phone call and his attorney, he was denied.
Let me be clear. Immigrants deserve to be treated with dignity. The Constitution deserves to be followed. Communities deserve safety from wildfires, and first responders deserve to do their job unimpeded.
Anything less is a slap in the face to the values we share as Americans.
I yield back.
On August 29, Rep. Salinas issued a statement on the arrest of her constituent.
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