Republicans are opposed to the bipartisan bill, with some saying it is ‘dead on arrival’
On Tuesday, the White House stated that the bipartisan Senate border bill presents “a moment of truth for House Republicans,” asserting that the manner in which GOP lawmakers cast their votes will “define the legacy of their narrow majority” in Congress.
Fox News Digital obtained a memo written by White House Deputy Press Secretary and Senior Communications Adviser Andrew Bates, titled: “Will the House GOP vote with the Border Patrol to secure the border, or for more fentanyl and Donald Trump?”
In the memo, Bates praised the Senate’s bipartisan $118 billion border security and foreign aid package. The bill designates $20 billion for border security and grants the federal government temporary authority to expel migrants when the average daily crossings surpass a certain threshold. The border security measures also entail ending “catch and release,” raising standards for asylum screenings and aiming to expedite the processing of asylum claims.
Although the bill has garnered some Republican support in the Senate, House GOP lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana, have indicated that it would be “dead on arrival” if it reaches the lower chamber. They have stated that it is “even worse than we expected.” Republicans argue that the bill fails to adequately address the border crisis and prevent the release of illegal migrants into the interior.
“The bipartisan border security deal is the toughest, fairest, and most significant border security legislation in decades,” Bates wrote in the memo, noting that it has garnered support from the Border Patrol Union, the Chamber of Commerce, and others.
Bates, outlining the bill, highlighted the addition of over 1,500 new U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel, along with 1,200 new U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel. The bill also includes equipment aimed at detecting fentanyl and the recruitment of thousands of new asylum officers.
Related Post: ‘Immediate’ presidential debate demanded by Trump
The bill also includes a provision that allows officials to shut down entries into the United States at the southern border, but only when there is a rolling seven-day average of 5,000 encounters a day or 8,500 encounters in a single day.
At that juncture, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is required to expel all migrants without processing them, except for unaccompanied children. This authority can only cease when encounters decrease by at least 25% for seven consecutive days, and DHS has a 14-day window to terminate the authority.
However, the president has the power to suspend the authority for a maximum of 45 days, and by the third calendar year, the DHS secretary is restricted to utilizing it for half of the calendar year. Additionally, DHS can exercise discretion to implement the authority when the average number of encounters surpasses 4,000 per day.
The bill also accelerates the issuance of two-year work permits for migrants released into the interior, offers government-funded legal counsel for migrants and children, strengthens language for the screening of migrants seeking asylum, provides work permits and temporary visas for 250,000 children of immigrants on temporary work visas who have reached adulthood, increases the cap on the number of green cards by 50,000 per year, and includes additional provisions.
The bill also sets up an expedited pathway for Afghans who were evacuated to the U.S. to obtain green cards.
“This is a critical moment for House Republicans,” Bates wrote. “After consistently opposing the substantial border security funding that Joe Biden has approved every year of his presidency, will the House GOP finally commit to securing our border and prioritizing the needs of families over partisan politics?”
Bates added, “Will House Republicans say ‘yes’ to more law enforcement like Border Patrol, whose union supports this bipartisan deal, or will they instead say ‘yes’ to more fentanyl and to Donald Trump’s insistence that border security be delayed in the name of politics?”
Bates stated that Republicans face a “critical choice” that “will shape the legacy of their slim majority.”
“It represents House Republicans’ final significant opportunity to cease obstructing the President from securing the border, a pattern that dates back to their hindrance of his comprehensive immigration reform plan from Day One,” Bates remarked.
However, Republicans, including Senators Tom Cotton, Mike Lee, Mike Braun, Bill Hagerty, and others, are vehemently opposed to the bill, and it also faces substantial opposition in the House.
“I’ve had enough,” House Speaker Johnson wrote on X. “This bill is even worse than we anticipated and falls far short of resolving the border crisis that the President has brought about. As the primary Democratic negotiator asserted: With this legislation, ‘the border never closes.'”
“If this bill reaches the House, it will be dead on arrival,” the speaker declared.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., stated that the Senate bill would not be brought to a vote in the lower chamber. Scalise, who manages the House schedule, emphasized this stance on X.
“Let me be clear: The Senate Border Bill will NOT receive a vote in the House,” Scalise wrote. “Here’s what the people pushing this ‘deal’ aren’t telling you: It accepts 5,000 illegal immigrants a day and gives automatic work permits to asylum recipients — a magnet for more illegal immigration.”
Additionally, former President Trump, the 2024 GOP frontrunner, cautioned Republicans that “only a fool or a Radical Left Democrat” would support the “horrendous” bill. He emphasized that the bill “only grants shutdown authority after 5,000 encounters a day when we already have the right to CLOSE THE BORDER NOW, which must be done.”
“This bill is a great gift to the Democrats and a Death Wish for the Republican Party,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform, adding that the bill should not be linked to foreign aid.
Trump warned Republicans: “Don’t be STUPID!!!”
“The Democrats broke Immigration and the Border,” Trump continued. “They should fix it.”
In a separate post, Trump said the “ridiculous bill” is “nothing more than a highly sophisticated trap for Republicans to assume the blame on what the Radical Left Democrats have done to our Border, just in time for our most important EVER Election.”
He added, “Don’t fall for it!!!”