mr. speaker , i rise today in opposition to the emergency supplemental appropriations ( hr 1268 ) , on substance and process .  i am strongly supportive of our fighting men and women , and mourn the loss of nearly 1 , 600 americans who have died in iraq , four of whom resided in my congressional district .  on substance , this bill fails to provide an exit strategy for our troops in iraq .  since iraq held democratic elections in january , the us should have been implementing an aggressive exit strategy that includes a timetable for the training of iraqi security forces , so us troops can return home .  moreover , with nearly $ 10 billion already appropriated but not spent for critical reconstruction projects in iraq , like rebuilding electrical grids and establishing telecommunications networks , us policy objectives for iraqi independence are jeopardized .  on process , many of the items in this bill should be funded under the regular order in the annual appropriations cycle .  unfortunately , the republican leadership has used this bill as a vehicle for passage of immigration measures that are divisive and harmful for our country , and could n't be passed as stand-alone bills .  provisions commonly known as the `` real id act '' regarding national driver 's license standards , asylum law and completion of a southern border fence have been controversial from day one , but were added to appease a vocal minority of anti-immigrant advocates .  i and many others in congress would like to have a rational debate on immigration reform , but we are denied the opportunity when the leadership attaches non-germane immigration measures to a funding bill .  to better demonstrate how the process has been hijacked by a minority of the majority , many of the same provisions that constitute the real id provisions in the supplemental being considered today were stripped from the intelligence reform and terrorism prevention act ( pl 108-458 ) in conference because of their extreme nature .  one of the most egregious provisions in the real id section of the supplemental is the blanket authority given to the secretary of homeland security to expedite construction of the remaining three miles of the southern border fence in san diego .  all americans should be concerned that the dhs secretary has carte blanche authority to waive any and all laws in the name of border security .  this provision is a dangerous attack against the civil rights of all americans , when any law can be waived under the guise of border security .  blanket authority to complete the three mile border fence is especially `` in your face '' politics when , under current law , the dhs secretary already has a national security waiver for the national environmental policy act and the endangered species act .  we must work harder to strike a balance between our national security and environmental protection , not simply ignore environmental laws .  furthermore , the driver 's license provisions of this bill touted in the name of national security are equally concerning .  it is indeed ironic that these provisions would not have stopped the 9/11 hijackers from obtaining driver 's licenses .  the breach of our border security was a result of the hijackers having been issued legal visas to enter the us , which many of them used to apply for driver 's licenses and identification cards .  even if the real id provisions had been in place before the 9/11 attacks , the hijackers still would have been able to obtain a driver 's license or state-issued id .  again , a minority of the majority is playing on the fears of this nation to enact a flawed policy that does not actually address the problem it purports to fix .  for the record , i do not support illegal immigration , but i do support a regulated process for immigrants who enter the us legally , pay their taxes and play by the rules to earn us citizenship .  no one can deny that comprehensive immigration reform is a topic on the minds of our constituents -- but such a critical policy debate should be conducted on its own merits .  