Washington—Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) today voted against Kristjen Nielsen to be Homeland Security Secretary:

“I voted against Kristjen Nielsen as Department of Homeland Security Secretary because I believe she would continue to prioritize deporting immigrant families rather than criminals. We also don’t yet have a commitment from Republican leadership that the DREAM Act will be passed by the end of the year, which places hundreds of thousands of young people in line for DHS deportation. 

“Over the summer I met the Sanchez family from Oakland. Maria worked as an oncology nurse, Eusebio as a truck driver. They were raising four remarkable children, three U.S. citizens and one protected by DACA. They owned their own home and paid their taxes. After 23 years in this country, Maria and Eusebio were deported, leaving their oldest daughter responsible for her siblings. These are the kinds of cases that make me fearful of the path DHS will take.

“Nothing in Nielsen’s record or testimony indicates that the department under her leadership would treat a family like this one differently.”