Michael Karlis
U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro speaks earlier this 12 months throughout a San Antonio occasion.
San Antonio Congressman Joaquin Castro and a gaggle of immigration specialists on Tuesday blasted a brand new invoice by Senate Republicans that might tie a draconian immigration crackdown to any additional overseas assist for the battle in Ukraine.
Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.; Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas; and James Lankford, R-Oklahoma, on Monday unveiled a proposal that might make it tougher for folks to legally search asylum within the U.S. whereas bringing again Trump-era insurance policies together with detaining immigrant households and resuming building of a border wall.
“Over my 10 years in Congress, I’ve voted repeatedly for border safety packages, and at this time, we’re spending extra on border safety than at any level in our nation’s historical past,” mentioned Castro, a Democrat. “However punitive packages that lock up households and deport asylum seekers aren’t the reply. We want critical options that handle the basis causes of immigration.”
Castro mentioned he hopes the White Home and Senate Democrats do not give in on excessive GOP calls for on immigration of their haste to proceed providing assist to Ukraine because it tries to beat again a Russian invasion.
Key parts of the GOP’s Senate proposal pull from the Safe the Border Act of 2023, which handed the Republican-controlled Home earlier this 12 months. Democrats, who maintain a majority within the Senate, have described that piece of laws as a non-starter.
Kerri Talbot, govt director of Immigration Hub, a nationwide nonprofit advocating for honest immigration insurance policies mentioned the Republican invoice is unworkable and reveals occasion leaders’ lack of seriousness about negotiating actual immigration reforms.
“The Republicans know that is invoice is a non-starter,” she mentioned. “It is not a critical try at negotiating.”
A return to Trump-era insurance policies additionally would impair regulation enforcement officers’ capacity to successfully deal with the influx of immigrants, whether or not they’re crossing the border with out paperwork or by way of authorized channels, mentioned Jason Houser, a former chief of workers at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Houser famous that household detention had no measurable impact in deterring border crossings in the course of the Trump administration.
“[This bill] focuses on damaged, failed insurance policies and operational measures taken by the earlier administration,” he mentioned. Subscribe to SA Present newsletters.
Comply with us: Apple Information | Google Information | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Fb | Twitter| Or join our RSS Feed
