19 SEPT 2023

House GOP’s “Border Security” Play: Bad Policy and Bad Politics

Hub Executive Director Kerri Talbot decries political posturing and calls for serious lawmaking 

WASHINGTON —  In response to the news that the House Republicans are adding their partisan border security bill to its budget proposal, Kerri Talbot, Executive Director of the Immigration Hub, issued the following statement: 

“Once again, House Republicans have shown they are more interested in scoring points with the MAGA base than in solving real problems with our outdated immigration system. Their decision to add most of HR 2 – a hyper-partisan bill on child deportation that is designed to give red meat to MAGA activists and Fox News –  is a non-starter in the Senate and threatens to send the U.S. government careening into a government shutdown. McCarthy’s gamesmanship threatens to collapse the American economy, leaving working families to pay the price of his partisan games. 

“Simply put, the bill is bad policy and the play is bad politics. The bill would effectively end asylum in America and destroy the incentives and disincentives put in place by the Biden administration to bring more order to the border. The net result would be a dramatic increase in irregular migration. But results are not of concern in this poorly-constructed bill. It is about stoking the base, not solving problems. It’s bad politics because it puts the House GOP on a collision course with the American people. Speaker McCarthy’s precarious position combined with the radicalism of MAGA Republicans means a government shutdown is increasingly likely. This is not going to end well – neither in the context of this specific budget battle nor with the 2024 elections on the horizon. The American people are tired of politicians scoring points at their expense and they will hold Republicans accountable next November. 

“Moreover, the American people want immigration solutions, not border bluster. A serious GOP would come to the table with Democrats to fashion bipartisan solutions that make our asylum system both fair and efficient, combine safe, legal and order pathways with clear rules for those ineligible for protection or admission, target employment-based immigration reforms to the industries suffering from growing labor shortages, and recognize undocumented immigrants as the Americans they already are.

“Most Democrats and immigration advocates want to work on practical solutions to the pressing challenges of an immigration system – a policy framework that has not been modernized by Congress for more than three decades. Unfortunately, the House GOP is not interested in bipartisan policy solutions. When sensible members of the Republican Party are interested in working on solutions, we’ll be ready.”

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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.