A group of conservative Republican state legislators say they want Michigan to enact laws to combat undocumented immigration.
Members of the House Freedom Caucus on Wednesday proposed a five bill package on immigration. The legislation includes making it a state level offense to be in Michigan without official legal status. The legislation would also punish local governments that are not enforcing federal immigration policies.
“Let’s stop the insanity,” said State Representative Steve Carra (R-Three Rivers). “Let’s stop the illegal immigration and get back to common sense policies.”
The lawmakers admit the Republican immigration bills likely have little chance of passing the Democratically-controlled state Legislature.
“The Democrats run this town, so until we elect more Republicans in this state, we’re probably not going to get much of this done,” said State Representative Matt Maddock (R-Milford).
President Joe Biden on Tuesday unveiled plans to enact immediate significant restrictions on migrants seeking asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border as the White House tries to neutralize immigration as a political liability ahead of the November elections.
The long-anticipated presidential proclamation would bar migrants from being granted asylum when U.S. officials deem that the southern border is overwhelmed. The Democratic president had contemplated unilateral action for months after the collapse of a bipartisan border security deal in Congress that most Republican lawmakers rejected at the behest of former President Donald Trump, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee.
Advocates say the new measure will put migrants in danger and violate international obligations to provide safe haven to people whose lives are threatened.
The Biden administration denies that.
