A tidal wave of border security legislation hits the House as Republicans make rapid progress in taking over DC
The legislative gears are already turning in Congress as Republicans prepare a series border security and other conservative policy proposals for President-elect Donald Trump two weeks before his inauguration.
Friday marked the first day of the 119th Congress, which means any bills not signed by President Biden must already be introduced and passed again, even if they passed one or both chambers in the previous term.
Republicans seem to have wasted no time on that. The latest congressional record shows that lawmakers have reintroduced several bills that Democrats and even some Republican lawmakers dismissed as “messaging” attempts last year.
Among them is the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act by Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, which would require proof of citizenship in the voter registration process.
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Republicans in this Congress have reintroduced several border security measures that were dismissed as “texting proposals” last term. (Getty Images)
Another bill reintroduced Friday was the Violence Against Women by Illegal Aliens Act by Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., which would have ordered the deportation of migrants found to have committed sex crimes.
“Let it pass both houses of Congress,” Mace wrote on social media over the weekend.
Meanwhile, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., announced the House will vote this week on the Laken Riley Act, named after the Augusta University nursing student who was killed by an illegal immigrant early last year.
The bill would require federal immigration authorities to detain and take in illegal immigrants who commit theft-related crimes.
It passed the House with some Democratic support, but failed in the Senate, which was led by then-Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.
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Included is Rep. Chip Roy’s SAVE Act, which is supported by President-elect Donald Trump. (Photo: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Now, however, Republicans are poised to control all the levers of power in Washington after Trump’s January 20 inauguration.
“If the Senate does its job, President Trump will make it law,” Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., who introduced the bill, said in a statement.
The fourth bill, among others, was reintroduced by Rep. Nick LaLota, RN.Y., and is aimed at denying funding to sanctuary cities.
Other Republican priorities introduced last year but which never received Biden’s signature have also been reintroduced, such as Roy’s bill along with new Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, R-Fla. impose sanctions on the International Criminal Court for the attack on Israel.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise has indicated that the Laken Riley Act will receive a vote this week. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
It’s a glimpse into the details of how Republicans intend to carry out their promise to secure the border.
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GOP lawmakers appear to be moving quickly to meet their goals Trump’s wish for the very active first 100 days of the Congress.
Over the weekend, GOP lawmakers began drafting plans for a sweeping overhaul of conservative policy, with the goal of including elements of border security, energy policy, tax cuts and defense measures.
