The House passed a resolution condemning the Biden administration over its border security policies, accusing the president of threatening national security amid record-high illegal immigration at the southern border.
Lawmakers voted 225-187, with 14 Democrats voting yes, on a resolution denouncing the Biden White House over the “public safety crisis along the southwest border,” advancing the legislation largely along party lines. The resolution is largely symbolic as it does not include any policy changes or hold any legislative power, but it serves as a messaging bill while Republicans seek to turn their attention to the southern border.
The resolution decries what House Republicans consider to be “open-border policies” and urges President Joe Biden to end his administration’s current border policies. The measure comes after lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), have repeatedly called on Biden to use his executive power to address the number of illegal immigrants coming into the country.
The legislation cites more than 7 million immigrants being encountered by U.S. Customs and Border Protection during the Biden administration, with “at least” 3.3 million of those being released into the country as they await proceedings. The bill also notes another 1.7 million “gotaways,” referring to illegal immigrants who managed to evade CBP agents and enter the country.
The vote comes shortly after Johnson met with Biden and other congressional leaders at the White House on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the national security supplemental currently being negotiated in the Senate. Johnson and other House Republicans have been adamant about passing stricter border security legislation, urging the Senate to take up their signature border bill that passed through the lower chamber last summer.
The Senate has been hammering out a border policy agreement over the last month as Democrats seek to secure additional foreign aid for Ukraine in exchange for stricter border policies being pushed by Republicans. Although that deal has not yet finalized its border deal, the proposal looks increasingly to be dead on arrival in the House as Johnson has already said he won’t bring the legislation to the floor for a vote.
Instead, the speaker is urging his Senate counterparts to prioritize the House’s flagship border security bill, arguing “now is not the time” to focus on advancing “comprehensive” reforms.
“It’s a complex issue. I don’t think now is the time for comprehensive immigration reform because we know how complicated that is — you can’t do that quickly,” Johnson said on Wednesday in an apparent dig at the Senate border talks.
Senate Republicans are pursuing policy changes, including restrictions on asylum, that the White House is open to, but the prospect of Democratic deal-sweeteners making their way into the bill, or large elements of H.R. 2 being missing, has soured its prospects in the House.
The lack of border legislation has angered several House conservatives, who have since threatened to withhold their support on any spending legislation until new policies are implemented. Meanwhile, the government is inching toward a shutdown deadline on Friday, after which several federal agencies will lapse in funding unless some sort of spending extension is passed.
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Senate and House leaders unveiled their proposal for a stopgap measure on Sunday, pushing the spending deadlines of Friday and Feb. 2 to March 1 and March 8, respectively. The Senate filed cloture on the continuing resolution on Tuesday, with Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) telling lawmakers the goal is to pass the measure “no later than Thursday.”
After that, the CR must make its way through the House, where it is expected to be brought to the floor under suspension of rules, a tactic that will allow leadership to overcome conservative pushback. The legislation is expected to pass the lower chamber with support from Democrats and centrist Republicans.
