Illegal immigration looks to be a major concern for voters in the polls, as do the crimes committed by those who shouldn't even be here. Immigration likely to be an issue to affect the 2024 presidential election, with polls also showing that former and potentially future President Donald Trump having the advantage over current President Joe Biden. It's also become an issue for individual states, though, especially as the border crisis made worse under Biden has affected every state. While Republican-led states look to be protecting their citizens, Democrat-led ones are embracing open borders.
In Democratically-controlled Minnesota, state legislators have passed legislation to allow for illegal immigrants to qualify for drivers licenses, free college tuition, and healthcare.
Currently being considered is a bill that would make Minnesota a sanctuary state. Meanwhile, it was thanks to sanctuary city policies in New York City and Athens, Georgia, that Jose Antonio Ibarra, an illegal immigrant from Venezuela, was able to allegedly murder 22-year-old nursing student Laken Riley, despite having been arrested previously.
Warning about the ramifications of Minnesota being a sanctuary state, Senate Republican Leader Mark Johnson pointed out in an interview with CBS Minnesota how the state's education and healthcare system are already stretched to their "maximum," which he said "are really struggling right now."
Johnson also warned how the bill "says we're not going to be working with our federal partners to really protect the integrity of Minnesota citizenship," adding his state will see "a lot more burden on those institutions that we rely on in this state and expect good service from."
WATCH: Minnesota Senate Republican Leader Mark Johnson explains how the states’education and healthcare systems, which are already at max capacity, will be burdened even more if Minnesota becomes a sanctuary state. #mnleg pic.twitter.com/ZGSOhWdaMt
— Republican State Leadership Committee (@RSLC) February 26, 2024
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Although there's concerns that the bill even has the votes, with the Minnesota Reformer quoting Democratic members opposed, Senate President Erin Murphy still insists on putting it through the committee process. As the report highlighted:
Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy, DFL-St. Paul, struck a more conciliatory tone when asked about Hortman’s take: “I think it’s important that we rely on the committee process,” she said. “So there will be bills that are introduced — some of them are going to be heard, not all of them — some will come to the floor for a vote.”
It was a blow to the dozens of people who packed an exuberant Capitol press room — and spilled out into the hallway — last week to support the bill, whose chief authors are Rep. Sandra Feist, DFL-New Brighton, an immigration attorney, and Sen. Omar Fateh, DFL-Minneapolis.
Massachusetts has been another state overrun by illegal immigration, with citizens even having to volunteer to house illegal immigrants in their private homes. Madeline also covered earlier this month how Brazilians here illegally and residing in Massachusetts have been arrested for rape.
Closer to Massachusetts is New Hampshire, which is controlled by Republicans and is looking to pass border reform legislation, to protect citizens rather illegals. The housing crisis that Massachusetts is facing for illegal immigrants is affecting New Hampshire as well, with NH Journal reporting last month how "Massachusetts Migrant Housing Crisis Comes to NH Border."
In contrast New Hampshire with other liberal states in the Northeast, an op-ed from earlier this month from New Hampshire State Senate Republicans, also in NH Journal, noted how "there was a 620 percent increase in illegal border crossings across the border sector that New Hampshire shares with Vermont and New York between October 1, 2022, and August 31, 2023, compared to the same period the year before."
As the op-ed also explains, New Hampshire may be a safe state, but is not immune. Hence the need for action:
That is why the legislature allocated $1.4 million to the Northern Border Alliance. It’s also why Republicans on the fiscal committee approved funding per Gov. Sununu’s request for the New Hampshire National Guard to assist Texas officials on the Mexican border.
...
New Hampshire is the safest state in the nation, but we are not immune. Last August, an illegal mass murderer from Brazil was arrested in Rye. That’s why we must continue to take action in the New Hampshire Senate to keep us the safest state in the nation.
This week, we will be taking up SB 563 to block Sanctuary Cities in New Hampshire. We will also vote on SB 504 which will enable local law enforcement to arrest people illegally crossing the northern border. When illegal aliens are arrested in the Granite State, they should be turned over to federal authorities for arrest or deportation.
By adopting these types of policies, we reduce the incentives for illegal aliens to come to New Hampshire.
On a bipartisan basis, the Senate has approved legislation to address the “catch and release” bail system that lets defendants who have repeatedly failed to appear on prior charges back on the street. The House is working on this important legislation also.
This continuous wave of violent crime by people who shouldn’t even be in the country must stop. Open borders, Sanctuary Cities, and Defund the Police policies all compound the problem. Sadly, many states lack the will to reduce crimes committed by illegal aliens. In New Hampshire, we are providing our law enforcement communities the resources and support they need to get the job done.
SB 563, which passed earlier this month, "prohibits state and local government entities from adopting sanctuary policies to prohibit or impede the enforcement of federal immigration law," and also instructs local law enforcement officers to "use best efforts to support the enforcement of federal immigration law."
The NH Journal report referenced concerns with not becoming like Massachusetts:
Sen. Sharon Carson (R-Londonderry) referenced a memo Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey issued last August to Homeland Security Director Alejandro Mayorkas declaring a state of emergency “due to rapid and unabating increases” of illegal immigrants.
Carson pointed specifically to a portion of the memo where Healey acknowledges the influx of illegal immigrants is costing Massachusetts $45 million per month.
“Can you imagine that here in New Hampshire?” asked Carson. “I don’t know where that money is going to come from.”
“And then she goes on to say she’d declared a state of emergency in Massachusetts, one that demands a response by all levels of government. This is what we are trying to protect New Hampshire from.”
Democrats who were quoted came off as particularly hysterical, with comparisons to Nazi Germany and Jim Crow:
Democrats also argued that racial animosity was part of the motivation behind the legislation. Sen. Shannon Chandley (D-Amherst) compared the GOP’s push for increased border security to Nazi Germany and racist Jim Crow laws.
“Would I have spoken up against the persecution of the Jews during the build-up to World War II?” Chandley asked. “Would I have defended my Japanese neighbors from internment camps, and would I have raised my voice to oppose Jim Crow laws?
“I know each of us hopes we would have done the right thing.”
Chandley later accused Republicans of “conflating immigration and fentanyl.”
Another Democrat, quoted in another NH Journal report, also came out against protecting residents from illegal immigrants. Sen. Becky Whitley, despite claiming "we are here to solve problems for New Hampshire citizens," insisted "we’re not here to solve the border crisis," as "we are not Congress" and even claimed "we are not here to address the border crisis."
In a statement for Townhall, Republican State Leadership Committee spokesperson Stephanie Rivera pointed out that "With Joe Biden turning every state into a border state, state Republicans are looking for solutions to curb the crisis at their doorstep while state Democrats are embracing open border policies."
Of the series of issues that RealClearPolling includes the averages of for Biden's approval ratings, immigration is the president's worst one. Just 31.7 percent approve of how he is handling the issue, while 63.8 percent disapprove.
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