As lawmakers prepare for the expiration of Title 42 next week, leaders from both sides of the aisle are ready to spar over border security as they head into 2024 — setting the stage for the issue to once again be at the forefront of a crucial campaign cycle.
Title 42 is set to expire on May 11, bringing an end to the COVID-19-era rule first implemented under the Trump administration that allows Border Patrol agents to expel illegal immigrants immediately upon encountering them. Despite the policy’s impending expiration, the Biden administration has yet to announce a plan to address the predicted surge of immigrants at the southern border — prompting concern from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.
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House Republicans responded by unveiling their border security bill on Tuesday, a 213-page document with two stated goals: secure the border and combat illegal immigration. The legislation would implement several new policies by forcing the Biden administration to restart border wall construction, hire more Border Patrol agents with increased pay, and end its catch-and-release practices, among other things.
“As the end of Title 42 approaches, it is clear the Biden Administration’s plan is to continue funding border mismanagement instead of border security,” Reps. Jim Jordan (R-OH), Mark Green (R-TN), and Michael McCaul (R-TX) said in a joint statement. "After announcing our border security framework almost one year ago, our committees have put forth legislation to roll back the harm this administration has caused our country.”
The legislation underscores the stances long held by Republicans and promoted on the campaign trail for years, becoming one of the party’s top-selling issues. With Title 42 ending soon, that messaging could become even more useful in the coming months.
“The fact they were able to get this bill done is a pretty big accomplishment out of the House,” GOP strategist John Feehery said. “It's not just going to be border security, but it's also going to have some elements of immigration reform. … It’s going to be a pretty big issue that, in my sense, is going to play pretty well in the election.”
Senate Republicans are also seizing on the issue to use as campaign fodder, with many seeking to place the blame on the Biden administration for the surge of immigrants over the last two years.
“Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have presided over the worst disaster at our southern border in our nation's history. This was not an accident. It was deliberate,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), who is up for reelection in a border state in 2024, said. “They don't intend to fix it. They don't intend to stop it. They don't intend to shut down the cartels. They don't intend to secure the borders. They don't intend to stop the drug traffickers. They intend to make it worse.”
Republicans have long dominated the immigration discussion, especially in 2016 when then-candidate Donald Trump made it a focal point of his campaign and subsequent administration. However, some GOP lawmakers have blurred the lines between border security and anti-immigration rhetoric, which could prove to be a challenge while on the campaign trail, according to political experts.
“Republicans have to be cognizant that you can be both pro-border security and pro-immigrant,” Feehery said. “I think that sometimes they get in this trap where they come off as being anti-immigrant, and that actually hurts them with not only Hispanic voters but also Asian voters. And those are voters that we really need to be going after because that's a pretty fast-rising group.”
Meanwhile, Democrats are expanding their attacks in an attempt to capitalize on the border crisis and shift attention away from President Joe Biden. White House officials seized on that messaging this week by pointing to provisions in the GOP-led debt limit bill they say would reduce spending for border security, accusing Republicans of holding the economy “hostage unless they are allowed to lay off thousands of border patrol agents.”
“The extreme MAGA Default on America Act would impose these damaging cuts for our national security in order to make room for deficit-increasing tax giveaways to rich special interests, including billionaires and multinational corporations,” a White House spokesman told the Washington Examiner. “Let that sink in. With this week’s vote, House Republicans looked their constituents in the eye and said that they are willing to single-handedly trigger a recession unless they can fire thousands of Border Patrol agents.”
Biden also responded by announcing he would send an additional 1,500 military members to the border in preparation for the end of Title 42 to assist with non-law enforcement tasks. Several Republicans have pointed to that decision as evidence of a flailing border response, but some analysts suggest the move could actually serve to boost the president’s standing.
“I’d say it’s a plus because what most Americans see is the president responding to the issue. I think the move is a political plus,” Brad Bannon, a Democratic strategist, told the Washington Examiner.
Some Republicans pushed back on that assertion, arguing Democrats reverse their positions on the issue too often to be reliable.
“On one hand, they're saying there's no problem. On the other hand, they’re saying, ‘We're gonna send 1,500 troops to the border. And they can't seem to get the most basic parts of their story correct,” said Rep. David Schweikert (R-AZ), who is also up for reelection in a border state. “You have Mayorkas saying there's no problem at the border. And at the next time, [he’s] talking about how concerned they are about Title 42 phasing out. Wait an hour; their story will change.”
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However, Schweikert said voters may be less concerned about Title 42 itself and more perturbed about how a surge of illegal immigration will begin to affect other aspects of voters’ lives, such as increasing homelessness rates and straining the economy. Those effects could be enough to convince independents to vote Republican in 2024.
“The Republican base already gets it. It's for the independent population to understand we're not making things up. This is a big deal to the nation. It's a big deal to our economics. It's a big deal to your access to healthcare,” Schweikert said. “It starts to have an effect on communities. And that's the moment you see the independent voters go, ‘Oh, that's what Republicans have been fixated on.’”