Senate centrists have been working with the White House to pass border legislation. Here is the full text of the bill. On the one hand, it mandates the deportation of single men, but on the other, it authorizes several million illegal immigrants per day before the border is closed.
The legislation also ties in Ukraine and Israel aid, forcing legislators to vote on the whole package. Many neoconservatives and liberals support the foreign aid, and are fine to allow large numbers of illegal immigrants. Fox News says:
Talks have been ongoing for months as a bipartisan group of lawmakers — Sens. James Lankford, Krysten Sinema, and Chris Murphy — have tried to strike a deal with White Houseofficials to fix the crisis at the southern border. The deal would be included in supplemental spending that includes billions in foreign assistance to Ukraine and Israel.
The agreement holds the potential to allocate $60 billion to Ukraine and $14 billion to Israel, yet its passage through the House appears doubtful. House Republicans have deemed the bill a non-starter unless it incorporates essential components from H.R.2, the House GOP border bill. With Senate Democrats dismissing H.R.2, tensions persist.
Unlike some ongoing political questions, illegal immigration is already fully legislated and does not need a compromise deal to solve. The Biden Administration has decided to not enforce immigration laws and directed the Border Patrol to facilitate the entry of illegals, before being released on US soil. The Hill reports:
“It is against the law for an individual to illegally cross into our country — it’s incredible that still needs to be said. We are a nation of law and order, yet the Biden administration has allowed over 8.8 million illegal immigrants to flood our border. Meanwhile, at least 85,000 migrant children have gone missing under the watch of Biden’s HHS as cartels and unvetted sponsors take advantage of them. That is unacceptable, and allowing even one immigrant to enter our country illegally is unacceptable,” Sen. Martha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) wrote in a statement.
“I will never vote to make illegal immigration legal, and I will not support this deal. If my Democratic colleagues are serious about working with us to secure the border, they should call for a vote on the Secure the Border Act (H.R.2), which arrived in the Senate on May 15 and has languished without even a hearing,” she added.
Conservatives will have to decide whether support for foreign countries’ border is more important than America’s. Republican legislators will also have to decide whether taking a deal will do more good than harm before the election. If the GOP wins power in November, reversing any laws allowing illegal immigration will use up a lot of political capital.
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