The following is from the office of Congresswoman Suzan DelBene:

Congresswoman Suzan DelBene opposed legislation that would result in the deportation of hundreds of thousands of children who know no other home than the United States.

DelBene called on House leadership to instead take action on comprehensive immigration reform that would create jobs and grow the economy.

“We should be spending our time working on comprehensive immigration reform. Instead, House leadership is focusing on partisan amendments that would tear apart Washington families stuck in a broken immigration system,” DelBene said. “I see it along our Northern Border – the importance of security must be balanced with humane enforcement policies that don’t bully schoolchildren who are poised to contribute to our society.”

President Barack Obama threatened to veto the $47.8 billion Department of Homeland Security funding bill if Republicans added partisan amendments defunding his executive orders deferring the deportation of millions of DREAMers and parents of U.S. children. DelBene has urged House leaders to bring a clean funding bill to the floor without policy riders.

Last year, Congress passed a government funding measure that included spending for DHS through Feb. 27, 2015. If leadership doesn’t act by the end of next month, it could endanger vital funding for national security programs, such as border enforcement.

“If funding for DHS is delayed, it will have a grave effect on Washington’s economy as commerce grinds to a halt along the Canadian border,” DelBene said. “This is a reckless tactic and I hope House leaders will work with Democrats to restore certainty to the funding of the Department of Homeland Security.”

As a member of the House Judiciary Committee, DelBene led efforts last year to enact Senate-passed comprehensive immigration reform by introducing the Border Security, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Modernization Act (H.R. 15) in the House.