FAIR: Speaker McCarthy, We're Here to Help
(January 7, 2023, Washington, D.C.) — The following statement was issued by the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) in response to the election of Kevin McCarthy of California as the 53rd Speaker of the House:
“Over the past two years, we have all witnessed the devastating harm wrought by a rogue administration that is asserting near dictatorial powers in a relentless effort to keep our borders open. The American people are appalled by what is going on and want to see it ended.
“Now that the 118th Congress is officially underway with a new House majority, it is in large part because voters rejected the Biden administration’s purposeful dismantling of our nation’s borders, as well as former Speaker Pelosi’s amnesty-first legislative agenda. Newly elected Speaker Kevin McCarthy and the entire Republican conference have a mandate to act decisively to restore control of our borders. After several days performing a bit of democracy for the whole country to see, it is time to get to work – the American people are waiting.
“Last year, a coalition of prominent organizations, including FAIR, The Heritage Foundation, NumbersUSA, and America First Policy Institute urged Congressional Republicans to quickly introduce and consider flagship legislation in the new session of Congress. Together, we stressed the critical importance of addressing core problems in our system that have fueled the historic wave of illegal immigration and enabled the Biden administration to maintain and expand its open-borders policies. Key reforms, we argued, must include closing asylum loopholes, amending the TVPRA with respect to the removal of unaccompanied alien children; terminating the Flores settlement agreement that limits the detention of children and family units; mandating appropriate resources for the border wall system and detention beds; and ending the abuse of parole authority, among other things.
“Republicans – under now Speaker McCarthy’s leadership – have promised multiple times that they will act in line with this agenda once in control of the House. Indeed, their ‘Commitment to America’ expressly included most of these reforms. The question now is whether House Republicans will be satisfied with simple border security measures, or whether they intend to offer the American people a real, overarching policy solution to a complex problem that has challenged lawmakers for generations. Speaker McCarthy, we urge you to do the latter. The entire coalition is here to help.”
Contact: Ron Kovach, 202-328-7004 or [email protected].