Chip Roy’s Border Bill is a Necessary Step to Address Our Nation’s Immigration Crisis

In January, Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) introduced the Border Safety and Security Act of 2023 (H.R. 29) to address the nation’s border security issues without preventing foreign nationals from seeking asylum in the United States. The bill would allow the Department of Homeland Security to suspend the entry of any non-U.S. national at any border to achieve operational control over that border. The Secretary of Homeland Security can prohibit non-U.S. nationals from entering any border for as long as necessary to secure the border. Roy’s bill would require the administration to detain or turn away migrants until their immigration status can be determined. 

This common-sense bill merely forces the Biden administration to enforce the law on the books, which is necessary to address a serious problem with our national security and immigration system. In Fiscal Year 2022, migrant border crossings topped 2.76 million, which broke the previous record by more than 1 million. In December 2022, there were over 251,000 land border encounters on the southern border, the highest month in recorded history.

Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) opposes this bill, claiming it would ban legitimate asylum claims. That claim is patently false as nowhere in the bill does it say it bans legitimate asylum seekers. In response, Rep. Roy argues that Gonzales is deliberately misrepresenting the bill and is “tired of Republicans using rhetoric that is not addressing the problem of people getting abused.” This isn’t the first time that Rep. Gonzales has gone against the Republican party this Congress. He was the only Republican to vote against the House rules that will make the 118th the most responsive to the people in a long time. 

Republicans campaigned on addressing the problems at the border. This bill is an important step to keep their promise to voters.

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