The nation is fiercely divided over the $118 billion U.S. Senate border deal, including in the Bay State where Gov. Maura Healey is pushing for the bill amid the migrant crisis while a local immigrant group called the legislation “inhumane and un-American.”
The bipartisan Senate bill, which would address southern border enforcement policy and also give aid to Ukraine and Israel, is already facing intense criticism from House Republicans with Speaker Mike Johnson calling it “DEAD on arrival in the House.”
The legislation with $1.4 billion for local governments and nonprofits that are facing a significant influx of migrants comes as Massachusetts shelters are full — resulting in migrants sleeping at Boston Logan International Airport. In the last week, the state opened a Roxbury shelter to temporarily house the migrants who had been staying at Logan.
“This bipartisan national security bill would make critical progress toward fixing our broken federal immigration system,” Healey said in a statement.
“It will strengthen our border security, expedite work permits, make the asylum process more fair and efficient, and more,” the governor added. “It’s time to put politics aside — Congress should pass this bill without delay.”
But the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy (MIRA) Coalition is slamming the legislation, saying the border deal would lead to harmful and backwards policies, such as streamlining deportations and shutting down the border.
“This bill is inhumane and un-American,” said Elizabeth Sweet, MIRA’s executive director. “Rather than prioritizing humane immigration reform, the Senate and President Biden want to gut it by making it easier to shut the border to individuals and families fleeing political violence.
“Immigration reform needs to include a functioning asylum system for those seeking protection, and a pathway to legal status for DREAMers and other long-term members of our communities,” Sweet added.
Congress and Biden should ensure that cities and states hosting arrivals receive the resources they need, MIRA’s executive director said. Also, the federal leaders should make sure that immigrants can more easily apply for work authorization permits, Sweet added.
“In the long-term, Congress and the President must focus on finally reforming an immigration system that for too long has been broken,” Sweet said. “It’s time for the U.S. to live up to its values, remain a beacon of hope and reject efforts to slam the door on arrivals with no other place to go.”
Meanwhile, the leading House Republicans are vowing that the bill would go nowhere in the House if the Senate passes it.
The legislation would not secure the border and would “actually incentivize more illegal immigration,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said in a joint statement with House GOP leaders.
“America’s sovereignty is at stake,” Johnson posted. “Any consideration of this Senate bill in its current form is a waste of time. It is DEAD on arrival in the House. We encourage the U.S. Senate to reject it.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is planning to bring the bill up for a key test vote on Wednesday. Schumer worked closely with Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell on the border security package after McConnell had insisted on the pairing as a way to win support for Ukraine aid.
Both leaders have emphasized for months the urgency of approving tens of billions of dollars for Ukraine’s fight. Yet with the funding stuck in Congress, the Defense Department has halted shipments of ammunition and missiles to Ukraine.
Biden said in a statement about the border deal, “We’ve reached an agreement on a bipartisan national security deal that includes the toughest and fairest set of border reforms in decades. I strongly support it.
“It will make our country safer, make our border more secure, treat people fairly and humanely while preserving legal immigration, consistent with our values as a nation,” he added. “It would give me, as President, a new emergency authority to shut down the border when it becomes overwhelmed. It will make our asylum process fairer and more efficient while protecting the most vulnerable. It will expedite work permits so that those who are here and qualify can get to work more quickly.”
Herald wire services were used in this report.
