4 MARCH 2021

Immigration Hub: With Plans for Anti-Immigrant Poison Pill Amendments, Republicans Continue to Follow Trump’s Lead

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Below is a statement from Sergio Gonzales, Executive Director of the Immigration Hub, on the expected anti-immigration amendments offered this week by Senate Republicans during the passage of the American Rescue Plan. 

“As the Senate prepares to vote on the American Rescue Plan and provide the American people with desperately needed relief, Republicans are expected to introduce numerous poison pill amendments that villainize immigrants and attempt to exclude immigrant communities from relief efforts. Not only is it irresponsible to attempt to derail comprehensive relief after more than a year of the worst public health crisis in living memory, anti-immigration amendments aren’t what the country wants or needs. 

“After four long years of cruelty-first immigration policy under Donald Trump, Americans rejected his administration’s harsh policies and want a change in leadership that will create a humane immigration system that works for everyone. But instead, Republicans are headed right back down the road of Stephen Miller and Trump, dog whistling with unpopular proposals that only serve to harm some of our country’s most vulnerable populations. 

“These misguided efforts stand to derail the entire recovery proposal that is supported by 76% of Americans, including 60% of Republican voters. Instead of attacking immigrants to score political cheap shots, Republicans should be proposing solutions and supporting measures that offer a path to citizenship to Dreamers, TPS holders and essential immigrant workers who continue to help the nation’s recovery during the pandemic.”  

Among the poison pill, anti-immigrant amendments expected to be introduced this week by Senate Republicans:

Amendment on Denying Mixed-Status Families COVID Relief introduced by Senator Todd Young during the previous Senate vote-a-rama:

Senator Young’s amendment 54 aimed to exclude mixed-status families from receiving economic impact payments. Currently, none of the stimulus payments enacted so far have included undocumented immigrants and neither has the Biden plan. Stimulus payments have unfairly imposed a “marriage penalty” on millions of US citizens and denied them payments because they were married to immigrants or their families included immigrants. Excluding these families fails to power the country’s economic recovery.

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The Immigration Hub is a national organization dedicated to advancing fair and just immigration policies through strategic leadership, innovative communications strategies, legislative advocacy and collaborative partnerships.