HARLAN, Iowa (KMTV) — Senator Grassley visited Shelby County on Thursday morning, stopping by the Harlan Community Library to talk to constituents.
- Questions ranged from the war in Ukraine, to the national debt, and immigration.
- Grassley spoke to high school students who were in attendance about the government.
- I asked him about the changes to asylum laws that were in an immigration reform bill that failed in February. He said he’d like to see reforms to laws for those seeking asylum, something that was part of the failed bill.
“It wasn’t just updating the asylum laws, because that was probably one of things that the president really didn’t want, it was in the bill," said Grassley. "But all these other bad things that were in the bill; why would you give the president the authority to waive a new piece of legislation, when he wasn’t enforcing existing law?”
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Immigration was on the minds of Iowans during Sen. Chuck Grassley's visit to Harlan on Thursday. I'm your southwest Iowa neighborhood reporter Katrina Markel. I asked the senator why his party didn't support recent immigration reform legislation.
Senator Grassley was asked a lot of questions about immigration during his visit to Shelby County.
“I’m seeing America, wide open,” one man said.
Immigration legislation proposed by three senators — a Republican, a Democrat and an Independent — failed in February, largely along partisan lines.
Grassley told me he liked some provisions in the bill, but thought it gave the president too much power.
"...We do need some changes in our immigration law, but when you start reading it and there were all these provisions for the president to waive certain provisions of it,” said the senator.
He said he’d like to see reforms to laws for those seeking asylum, something that was part of the failed bill.
“It wasn’t just updating the asylum laws, because that was probably one of things that the president really didn’t want, it was in the bill, but all these other bad things that were in the bill; why would you give the president the authority to waive a new piece of legislation, when he wasn’t enforcing existing law?”
He also took questions about government from students
Student: “So, do you believe at this point it’s kind of Christianity vs. secularism?”
Grassley: “No...”
Zeke Christensen, 16: “I also met Mr. Grassley in Washington D.C. and I figured that I’d want to hear his real opinions.”
There were a number of farming-related questions from carbon capture pipelines to pork production. A new farm bill is overdue, but Grassley thinks the current one will be extended for another year.
