A group of House Democrats have created a task force focused on securing the southern border, according to a report from NBC News.
The “Democrats for Border Security” task force is co-chaired by Rep. Henry Cuellar (TX) and Rep. Tom Suozzi (NY). Suozzi reportedly flipped a Republican-held district after he campaigned on toughening U.S. immigration laws (via NBC):
One thing they have in common: They're fed up with the party's leftward turn on immigration over the last decade and want a course change to emphasize enforcement. Cuellar's calls for tougher immigration laws date back years. Then Suozzi successfully deployed it in the suburbs of New York. They both say Democrats must do the same to win competitive House districts and defeat former President Donald Trump this November.
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A late-January NBC News poll found that Trump has a 35-point advantage over Biden among voters asked who they believe would do a better job at "securing the border and controlling immigration."
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The new caucus has 26 members, including a host of Democrats in tough districts, including Reps. Matt Cartwright, D-Pa.; Angie Craig, D-Minn.; Jared Golden, D-Maine; Susie Lee, D-Nev.; Steven Horsford, D-Nev.; Mike Levin, D-Calif.; Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla.; and Mary Peltola, D-Alaska. It also includes Reps. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., and Colin Allred, D-Texas, who are running for the Senate in border states where immigration looms large for their electorates.
“I think it’s a pretty good pathway for Democrats. Don’t cede the narrative to Republicans when it comes to border security," Cuellar said in an interview with the outlet. “It doesn’t matter if we’re Hispanics. We want to see order. We want to see security."
In addition, Suozzi said that he thinks Democrats are “already changing” their tune on border security.
“Democrats have always been concerned about border security, but now they’re being more vocal about it and proactive about it. And I think the president is doing that,” he told the outlet.
Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego added, “The Arizona border leaders and law enforcement I’ve met with are tired of it. We need to cut through the noise and get a border security bill done.”
This week, Leah covered how with the help of 14 Democrats, House Republicans on Tuesday passed a resolution denouncing the Biden administration's immigration policies.
"The current state of our nation's border security is unsustainable," said Rep. Monica De La Cruz (R-TX), who authored the resolution. "The policies put forth by the Biden administration have resulted in the worst border security crisis in our nation's history, endangering our communities and straining our resources."
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