Congressional Republicans ran a campaign on border security last year.
So it’s not really surprising that the first legislative efforts in 2025 focused on illegal immigration and tightening border security.
Some will debate whether Congressional Republicans appropriated the murder of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley for political gain. Riley, 22, went for a run in February last year but never returned. Jose Antonio Ibarra murdered Riley. He entered the country illegally from Venezuela.
“He hit her in the head with a rock. This is one of the most heinous crimes imaginable. People… We need to know what this animal did to her.” .
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Jose Ybarra was found guilty on 10 charges in the death of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley. (Hyo-Seob Shin/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, Pool)
Republicans took notice of this episode. On the right, the Laken Riley incident symbolized everything that is wrong about the border and the Biden administration. Days after Riley’s death last year, the House approved the Laken Riley Act. The bill would require federal custody of anyone illegally arrested for shoplifting or theft within the country. Republicans argued that Riley would still be with us today if policies were in place to pick up Ybarra.
It will be months before Congressional Republicans are on the same page regarding President-elect Donald Trump’s demands for a “big, beautiful bill” on taxes, federal spending and immigration. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) said the goal is to pass the settlement in early April.
Approving a border security package is difficult enough, not to mention the cost. So Congressional Republicans are eyeing the low-hanging fruit. So Republicans turned to their old standby, the Laken-Riley Act, as their major legislative effort in the new year.
Progressive Democrats pounced on Republicans, accusing them of racism.
“This is just another attempt to score cheap political points from a tragic death,” Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., said during a floor debate. “This repeats the Republican strategy over and over again: scare people about immigration.”
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Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., accused Republicans of trying to “score cheap political points” by attaching Laken Riley’s name to the illegal immigration crime bill. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“Their bill today is an empty and opportunistic measure,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee. “Choose a crime. Paste the immigration law template that targets convicted criminals, select a specific person who has only been accused of committing a crime, or who has been arrested for committing a crime. “Detention or deportation of specific persons only.”
“It’s clear that House Republicans are trying to advance anti-immigrant policies,” said House Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.). “I personally voted against it because it would pave the way for DACA patients to be deported, even if they were just close to someone who committed a crime.”
Republican lawmakers also responded with applause.
“My Democratic colleagues, how many more bills with your name do we need to pass before we start taking this crisis seriously?” said Rep. Tom McClintock, R-S.C., during a debate on the House floor. California) asked.
Most of the criticism of the Democratic Party has come from the party’s left wing and progressive wing.
But an evolution is underway within the Democratic Party. Reality in terms of border security, immigration, and how the party largely ignored this issue in the last election. And he probably paid the price for it.
Laken Riley Act passed by 48 Democrats (all Republicans)
Thirty-seven House Democrats voted in favor of the Laken-Reilly Act when the House approved the first version of the bill last year. This week, that number swelled to 48 Democratic votes when the House approved the Laken-Riley Act of 2025 in the first legislative vote of 2025.
An examination of the voting matrix shows how dozens of moderate Democrats and representatives from battleground districts voted yes. Six Democrats who voted against it last year voted against it this time.
They include Reps. Brendan Boyle, D-Pennsylvania, Val Hoyle, D-Ore., Lucy McBath, D-Georgia, Joe Morrell, D-N.Y., Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., and Terry Sewell, D-N.Y. . ah.
“I am concerned about what happened to Ms. Riley,” said Morrell, the top Democrat on the House Administration Committee. “I want to prevent the same thing from happening to other people.”
Other longtime conservative Democrats, such as Rep. Henry Klar (D-Texas), also voiced support. He represents the border district. When asked why he voted yes, Cuellar said, “It’s simple. We don’t welcome people who break the law.”
Other moderates representing battleground districts who voted yes included Rep. Angie Craig (D-Minn.), Rep. Don Davis (D-North Carolina), Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine); They include Congresswoman Marie Grusenkamp Perez (D-Washington).
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Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) speaks during a press conference about rising suicide rates among U.S. Border Patrol agents on Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2022, at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)
So did the Democratic Party become religious after the election?
“There has been criticism that the Democratic Party is not taking immigration seriously,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D.N.Y.) asked. “Are there any regrets and that’s why some of these votes were changed?”
Jeffries attributed the culprit to new members of the Democratic caucus.
“My understanding is that there are about eight to 10 more Democratic votes this year than last year. We have 30 new members in the House Democratic caucus,” Jeffries said.
But even if a bill passes the House, there’s always the Senate. And the Senate never considered the Laken-Reilly Act last year.
“The Senate,” Collins lamented. ”[The bill] I got stuck and didn’t show up anywhere. It fell into a Senate black hole. Like a lot of the bills we sent over there. ”
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Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pennsylvania, said wanting secure borders is not “xenophobic.” (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
But Republicans now control the Senate. Not the Democratic Party. New Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R.S.D.) has ensured that his group also makes the Laken-Reilly Act a primary focus in early 2025.
“Despite the bill having bipartisan support in the House, Senate Democrats universally opposed (the Laken-Reilly Act) last year,” Thune said. “Let’s see what they do when the new Senate majority brings it to a vote.”
Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pennsylvania), who often opposes his party, quickly signed the Laken-Reilly Act.
“It’s not xenophobic to want secure borders,” Fetterman said. “If we don’t want people with criminal records and actively breaking the law to remain in this country, that’s not xenophobia.”
Fetterman dismissed liberal concerns about civil rights violations for undocumented immigrants who may be detained.
“If they’re here, technically they’re already breaking the law,” Fetterman said.
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Other Democrats quickly signed on in support of the bill.
Among them was Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), a freshman representing a border battleground state. He claims Democrats tainted the border security issue in the election.
“There was a total inaction. It certainly hurt the Democratic Party and potentially the White House,” Gallego said. “I think we have to take a lesson from that.”
The Senate today voted to break the filibuster and begin debate on the Laken Riley Act. If it clears that procedural hurdle today, it is expected to be passed next week.
Republicans plan to introduce other border security and immigration bills in the coming months. It will be interesting to see if the Democratic Party joins them. The lesson from the Laken-Riley Act is that Democrats representing the playing field believe their party has failed when it comes to border security. They’re trying to vaccinate themselves on the problem. And even if not all of them are Democrats, this shows the party’s approach on the border is different than it was last year.
Chad Pergrum currently serves as the Senior Congressional Correspondent for FOX News Channel (FNC). He joined the network in September 2007 and is based in Washington, DC.
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