Support for amnesty growing within GOP ranks

Even though the House is out for its August recess, another House Republican, Rep. Jack Bergman (R-MI), cosponsored H.R. 9535, the Securing Agriculture's Workforce Act, this week. The bill, introduced by Rep. Glenn Thompson (R-PA), would grant amnesty to millions of illegal-alien farmworkers and shield their employers from prosecution for violating federal employment laws.

Rep. Bergman's cosponsorship caused him to drop 39 spots in this week's Congressional Immigration Rankings, according to IAP Action. He suffered the biggest fall in the rankings this week and now ranks 180th overall in the House.

However, the larger concern is the growing number of House Republicans who have signed onto the two major amnesty bills introduced in the House. In addition to Rep. Thompson's agricultural amnesty bill, Rep. Maria Salazar (R-FL) has introduced H.R. 4393, the Dignity Act, which would grant amnesty to millions of illegal aliens and expand legal immigration.

With Rep. Bergman's cosponsorship of H.R. 9535, that bill now has 50 Republican cosponsors. Meanwhile, Rep. Salazar's H.R. 4393 has 17 Republican cosponsors (excluding Members from U.S. territories). Between the two bills, 58 Republicans are now publicly supporting amnesty for illegal aliens.

Making matters worse, a few members of President Trump's cabinet have expressed an openness to amnesty.

Without pressure from President Trump, there is little chance House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) would bring either bill to the floor for a vote. But that is not necessarily where the threat lies.

There are Democratic cosponsors on each bill, and any Member of Congress could start a discharge petition. A discharge petition allows a majority of House members to force a vote on a specific piece of legislation. We saw this process play out with the House vote on a bill to overturn the Trump Administration’s cancellation of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haiti, and give them all amnesty until 2029. That bill passed the House. If all Democrats signed onto a discharge petition to force a vote on either bill, only five Republicans would need to join the effort to force a vote—and six of the 58 Republicans are not running for re-election.

You can view the full Congressional Immigration Rankings at IAPAction.com. Also, see our breakdowns on H.R. 9535 and H.R. 4393.

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Next Week

Congress is still on August recess. The House returns on August 31, and the Senate returns on September 14.