Details – the actual text – of the controversial border bill that Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford has been toiling on for four months are expected to be released later this week. Debate on the Senate floor could begin by the middle of next week.
Meanwhile, efforts by many conservatives to reduce the chances of passage continue.
There are several rationalizations that Republican critics are using to criticize the upcoming border bill, some of which are likely to persist, regardless of the text. However, based on the information leak allegations, the argument is that the bill does not actually solve the problems that many people are clinging to.
“There is great concern, and I share that, about the normalization of large numbers of illegal immigrants,” Rep. Josh Brechen (R-OK2) said in an interview Tuesday.
Brechen, who currently tends to oppose the bill, has heard that it would allow for up to 5,000 asylum seekers a day.
“There's so much misinformation out there, like these 5,000, and those numbers are just ridiculous.”
Sen. Lankford is imploring his colleagues to hold off on reviewing the bill until they see the text. A junior senator from Oklahoma is making a similar case to voters, calling and writing to urge them to vote against the bill.
“It hurts me to be told I shouldn't vote for a bill when no one has read it,” Mullin said in a video posted on his social media page. “And I'm not trying to be condescending here. I'm just being serious. We're making decisions on bills that we haven't read.”
Another justification for opposing the bill is former President Donald Trump's argument on the campaign trail that no law is needed to secure the border.
1st District Councilman Kevin Hahn said he would reserve judgment on the bill until he sees the text. But he also questions whether the law is actually necessary.
“Nothing has changed in the law since President Trump took office. The only thing that has changed is the president's own actions,” Rep. Hahn (R-OK1) said in an interview this week.
The counterargument from many moderate Republicans is that this is a rare opportunity to achieve real policy gains, and that Republicans have more or less the upper hand.
“We're at a moment in this divided government where we as a Republican party have some influence, and we're making sure we secure our borders and especially in policy areas,” said North Dakota Sen. Kevin Cramer. “We can make incremental changes in the right direction.”
Sen. Mullin said that for him, the three “pillars” of reform would be to stop migrants coming to the border, change asylum policy, and change parole policy.
“If you can do those three things, it's a win for us. If you can't do that, you're not a starter,” Mullin said in the video.
Some believe that passing the bill would give Biden and the Democratic Party an electoral advantage and want to vote it down.
“That's ridiculous. We're here to solve problems,” Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK4) said in a recent interview.
“So I'm in the sixth year of a six-year term,” Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-North Dakota) told reporters Thursday. “I don't think we should take the last year off.” Told. ”
There are obviously big questions about what House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) will do with this bill in the House, but it will have to pass the Senate first, which is by no means a given. It is likely to be opposed not only by Republican opponents, but also by some of the more progressive Democrats. And it needs 60 votes to pass.
