With illegal border crossing having slowed to a manageable trickle under the second Trump administration, some Republicans in Congress have decided to do the most Republican thing ever: Propose a mass amnesty that would stop the deportation of the majority of illegal aliens.
Rep. Maria Salazar (R-FL), Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY), and others joined with Democrats to introduce the bipartisan "Dignity Act," which would essentially legalize every illegal immigrant in the country who entered before 2021. Think DACA, but for every person who has crossed the border illegally.
Here's the list of GOP cosponsors joining Salazar's gambit. For those unfamiliar with Lawler, he's the guy who held the 'One, Big, Beautiful Bill' hostage over a SALT cap increase that makes red states pay his New York taxes.
So what's in this dumpster fire proposal? It's amnesty, plain and simple, and amnesty at a level that has never been suggested before. It makes the old "Gang of Eight" proposal look moderate, all under the guise of empathy and "dignity," with Salazar claiming it's also vital for the economy.
"No more need to choose between amnesty and deportation, the Dignity Bill is the answer," Salazar said.
She said immigration is the shadow looming over the economy.
"It takes a lot of courage to step up to say that you want to be part of the solution," Salazar said.
The president recently signed the "big beautiful bill" that sets aside $150 billion to secure the border. But Zalazar said it doesn’t solve the situation of more than 10 million undocumented migrants.
If passed, this is how migrants would qualify to apply for "dignity" status:
- They must have lived in the U.S. for [more] than five years.
- They cannot have a criminal record.
- Must be working and paying taxes.
If approved, a migrant would pay a $7,000 fine over a seven-year period, and they must buy their own health insurance, with no access to federal aid programs.
The "must have lived in the U.S. for more than five years" part is especially cute. Salazar is trying to appeal to President Donald Trump by making the only illegal immigrants who entered under Biden targetable for deportation. I sincerely doubt he's going to fall for that bit of pandering. An illegal immigrant is not better or worse depending on which president they crossed illegally under, and no federal law should be based on such an arbitrary standard.
In its current form, this bill would offer mass amnesty to well over 10 million people. Another part of this, which isn't mentioned above, is that any minor who has entered illegally at any point would receive a four-year path to citizenship.
It gets worse, though.
Oh, and by the way, this bill is being supported by Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-CA), who was present with the mob that recently attacked federal immigration authorities in California. So yeah, if he's on your side, you're on the wrong side.
This is just an unbelievable turn of events. Congress has passed an increased budget for ICE, and the border has been secured in ways few thought possible. How is now the time to introduce a mass amnesty bill? It's such an insane attempt to surrender not just practically, but politically as well. Salazar has even taken to using left-wing language about illegal immigrants living "in the shadows." I have a feeling she's going to be feeling the heat after this.
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