Drive sober or get — deported.
The House of Representatives on Thursday passed a bill to make driving “while intoxicated or impaired” a deportable offense.
The measure, titled the Protect Communities from DUIs Act, which was introduced by Rep. Barry Moore (R-Ala.), cleared the lower chamber 274 to 150, with only Democrats in opposition.
“Every 45 minutes. That’s how often someone in the United States dies in a crash involving an alcohol-impaired driver,” Moore said in a speech before his bill passed.
He recalled a couple that he knew personally, Angel and Jeremy Seay, from his hometown of Enterprise, Ala., who were killed in a drunk driving accident involving an illegal immigrant.
“Angel and Jeremy were riding their motorcycle together when an illegal immigrant under the influence of alcohol collided into them with his pickup. Their lives were cut dramatically short. Sadly, tragedies like this are not uncommon across our country,” he recounted.
On average, 37 people in the US are killed every day from drunk driving, including 13,384 in 2021, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
In total, 59 Democrats joined a solid bloc of 215 Republicans to pass the measure. Seven lawmakers did not vote. Moore first introduced the measure on Jan. 11.
“The bar to admission shall apply to an individual who has been convicted of the offense or has admitted to having committed the acts which constitute the elements of the offense. As a ground for deport-ability, the individual must have been convicted of the offense,” the text of the bill said.
The legislation was intended to clarify any discrepancies between state and federal law over whether illegal immigrants can remain on US soil after they get convicted of a DUI charge.
During a press conference in South Carolina in which local Republicans showcased their support for former President Donald Trump, a state lawmaker highlighted the death of six-year-old Maddie Hines in a car accident from an illegal immigrant who was under the influence last year.
The suspect, Gabriel Arteaga, had been deported under Trump but regained entry in the US under President Biden.
Make America Great Again Inc., a Trump-aligned super PAC, unearthed an old clip of Biden suggesting that drunk driving isn’t a felony offense when asked if he’d deport illegal immigrants over that during the 2020 election cycle.
“You only arrest for the purpose of dealing with a felony that’s committed, and I don’t consider drunk driving as a felony,” Biden said in the clip.
To become law, Moore’s bill must clear the Senate and get Biden’s signature.
During fiscal year 2023, which ended Sept. 30, more than 2.47 million migrant encounters were recorded along the Mexico frontier, according to US Customs and Border Protection.
Another 302,034 illegal border-crossers were apprehended in December.