By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
U.S. Rep. Tracey Mann, R-Kan., discussed concerns over the crisis of immigrant children being held at the U.S. Mexico border during a visit to Hays on Wednesday.
Mann was in Hays for a tour of Developmental Services of Northwest Kansas.
Mann visited the border earlier this month and said the crisis there is tragic.
"I would say innocent children are the losers, and Mexican cartels are the winners," he said. "The Mexican cartels are making millions of dollars every month as they are getting paid to smuggle children across the border."
Mann said he supports returning to a Trump-administration policy that would have the children returned to Mexico.
He said he thought the United States should continue to build the border wall.
"The money has been appropriated. We are paying those contractors even though they are not building it," Mann said.
He said gaps in key areas along the border where the wall has been started need to be finished.
He was asked what the U.S. should do with the thousands of immigrant children who are currently in U.S. custody.
He did not answer this question directly, but he did say the U.S. needs to send a strong message that if you are an unaccompanied minor, the U.S. is not going to let you in the country.
Mann was asked about breaches that have already occurred at the wall.
"They have identified the most crucial 110 miles where [people] are going through," he said. "It's not just a wall. It's a system. It's also fiber optics to pick of vibrations in front of the wall. It's arial surveillance."
Mann said he supports legal immigration.
"We need to come up with a system and a process that works so people can come to the country legally to help address some of the workforce issues that Developmental Services and northwest Kansas has," he said.
Mann was hesitant to speak to initiatives President Joe Biden was set to touch upon in his address to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday night.
"We need to have systems in place that promote education and provide the workforce that the economy needs," Mann said. "At the same time, we have to be mindful of costs, as we have an almost $3 trillion deficit."
Mann said he also has reservations about Biden's $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan.
"Less than 25 percent of that goes to roads and bridges and waterways. I think there is bipartisan support for true traditional infrastructure, which would be much less than the $2 trillion. ...
"I just think what the Big First Kansas needs is money for roads, bridges — those types of things — true, traditional infrastructure."
In Biden's first 100 days, Mann said the country is making good progress in battling the pandemic.
However, he said the Americans need to keep getting their immunizations. He advocated for the country to open up faster and local governments to have more control.
He said he is opposed to making Washington, D.C., the 51st state.
Mann is on the House Ag Committee. He said rural broadband is a high priority for him. The current Farm Bill expires in 2023. Congress will likely begin working on new legislation by the end of the session.
"The bottom line is that I think farmers want trade and not aid," he said. "I think crop insurance and other risk management tools are important, but it's good news corn prices and milo prices and wheat prices are very high right now.
"That is going to be good for Main Street Kansas and Kansas taxpayers."
Mann said he thinks the U.S. needs to continue to look at its trade relationship with China. The United State's current trade deal with China expires Feb. 15.
He said he would like to see the United States expand its trade relationships with other countries, including Japan, Canada and Mexico.
Jerry Michaud, DSNWK president/CEO, talked about the need to increase funding for services for developmentally disabled individuals in the state of Kansas.
Kansas has more than 4,500 developmentally disabled individuals waiting for services, some of which are waiting as long as 10 years for funding.
He said he is hopeful the federal government will increase Medicaid matching funds for services this year.