GOP Senators Oppose Bipartisan Border Bill Due to Presidential Power to Suspend ‘Emergency’ Authority

The United States Senate has recently released the text for the long-awaited border bill, which is part of the White House’s national security request. However, more than a dozen GOP senators have expressed their opposition to the bill due to one of its provisions that grants President Biden the power to effectively nullify the law.

According to the bill’s text, the president is given the authority to direct the secretary of Homeland Security to “temporarily suspend” the border emergency authority on an emergency basis. This means that if Biden does not want to shut down the border but Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas does, Biden can suspend its enforcement for a 45-day period.

The legislation requires a 60-vote threshold to pass, and Republican lawmakers have urged leaders to give them more time to offer amendments. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has stated that the Senate could begin voting on it as soon as Wednesday.

Senator Mike Lee, R-Utah, has criticized this provision, stating that Biden can claim anything is in the “national interest” and thereby suspend the “border emergency authority.” Lee urges his colleagues not to pass the bill, as he believes it is a “hot mess.”

The bill also includes provisions for the secretary of Homeland Security to be involved in the identity verification process of migrants crossing the border and to ensure that their identities are checked against all appropriate records and databases. If a migrant attains asylum, they will immediately be given a work visa.

Senator Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas, has also expressed his opposition to the bill, stating that it gives Secretary Mayorkas the right to grant asylum claims and thus American citizenship to illegal aliens at the border without review by the immigration courts. Cotton believes that this will be a “massive pathway to rubber-stamping amnesty.”

Senator Mike Braun, R-Indiana, has called the bill “another Ukraine aid package that weakly addresses Biden’s border crisis.” Braun intends to vote against the bill.

Senator Rick Scott, R-Florida, has also opposed the bill due to a provision that provides taxpayer-funded legal representation for illegal immigrants. Scott believes that this looks more like an immigration bill than a border security bill.

Senator Bill Hagerty, R-Tennessee, has criticized another portion of the bill that includes $1.4 billion for NGOs to resettle illegal aliens in communities via airplane tickets and hotel rooms. Hagerty believes that this is more of the taxpayers’ money being used to buy off Democrat sanctuary city mayors.

Senator Steve Daines, R-Montana, has also stated that he will vote against the bill due to its lack of border security, taxpayer-funded lawyers for illegal immigrants, and the large amount of money being given to radical open borders groups.

Other Republican lawmakers opposing the bill include Senators Josh Hawley, Tommy Tuberville, Ron Johnson, Marsha Blackburn, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Roger Marshall, and JD Vance.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Schumer, and lead Republican negotiator Senator James Lankford hope to get the bill across the finish line. Lankford believes that the bill will put “huge numbers of new enforcement tools in the hands of a future administration and push the current Administration to finally stop the illegal flow.” McConnell also believes that the legislation will bring “direct and immediate solutions” to the crisis at the southern border.

However, House Speaker Mike Johnson has continually called the bill “dead-on-arrival.” The proposed legislation will total just over $118 billion, with 50,000 new visas. The emergency border proposal is aimed at gaining control of an overrun asylum system that has been overwhelmed by historic numbers of migrants illegally crossing the border. The bill proposes an overhaul to the system with tougher and quicker enforcement measures.

At least 1.5 million illegal immigrants identified as “gotaways” crossed the border under the Biden administration, according to a 2023 report. The bill’s provisions come into effect when there is an average of 5,000 or more daily encounters with illegal immigrants over a seven-day period or, alternatively, when a combined total of 8,500 or more aliens are encountered on any single calendar day. However, the president can find that it is in the “national interest” to temporarily suspend the border emergency authority and direct the secretary to suspend its use.

In conclusion, the border bill released by the US Senate has faced opposition from more than a dozen GOP senators due to the provision that grants President Biden the power to suspend the “border emergency authority.” The bill includes provisions for identity verification, asylum claims, and funding for NGOs, among other things. The opposition to the bill highlights the ongoing debate over border security and immigration policy in the United States. The bill’s future remains uncertain as it moves through the legislative process.