Fourteen Democrats joined Republicans in voting for a GOP-led resolution disapproving of President Biden’s border policy.
The resolution, which is mostly messaging and does not change policy, comes after 300,000 migrants attempted to cross the southern border in December – an all-time record.
The legislation places specific blame on President Biden’s ‘open-border policies’ for conditions at the U.S.-Mexico border, stark language to attract more than a dozen votes from the president’s own party.
The Democrats who voted for it were mostly moderates and those who represent border districts.
Customs and Border Patrol encountered nearly 2.5 million migrants in fiscal year 2023, and was on track to break that record in 2024.
Border crossings even hit 12,000 a day toward the end of the year. Border agents say their resources are ‘at capacity’ at around 5,000 crossings per day.
The border has been front and center of political discourse as Congress and the White House attempt to work out a deal that would include border security provisions and Ukraine and Israel funding.
Republican Iowa caucus goers said in exit polls that immigration was their number one issue, suggesting the matter will remain top of mind in the 2024 election.
Speaker Mike Johnson met with President Biden and Senate leaders Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., to discuss the package.
Biden has publicly expressed more openness to border security reform than ever before.
But House Republicans have expressed skepticism at the negotiations led by their Senate counterparts – insisting they will only accept the hardliner border bill passed in the House last year.
‘I don’t think now is the time for comprehensive immigration reform because we know how complicated that is,’ Johnson told reporters on Wednesday. ‘You can’t do that quickly. I think it’s past time to secure the border. And that’s what HR 2 reflects.’
A group of migrants receives food outside the migrant landing zone during a winter storm on January 12, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois
Migrants line up as they get ready to be picked up by Border Patrol agents in Eagle Pass, Texas, USA, 14 January 2024
For weeks Johnson has urged Biden to end ‘catch-and-release,’ turning away any migrants encountered between ports of entry and use parole only on a ‘case-by-case basis.’
Johnson even urged Biden to suspend all immigration – using his authority under Section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
The provision allows the president to suspend the entry of any foreign citizens for an unspecified amount of time if allowing them in is deemed ‘detrimental’ to US interests.
‘President Biden’s open border policies have caused a national public safety crisis, undermined the rule of law, and brought into question the very sovereignty of the United States,’ Rep. Nathaniel Moran, R-Texas, who introduced the resolution, said in a statement.
‘By removing effective Trump-era policies like ‘Remain in Mexico’ and replacing them with new ‘Catch and Release’ policies that allow migrants free roam within the United States once here; by broadening the pathway to grant asylum to almost anyone who applies; and by redirecting the efforts of Border Patrol away from law enforcement in favor of processing immigration paperwork, the Biden Administration has sent a loud and clear message to the rest of the world that the southern border is open.’