McCarthy rules out amnesty for illegal immigrants after Biden calls for State of the Union

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Thursday again ruled out any form of amnesty for illegal immigrants already in the U.S. after the Biden administration renewed its call for a path to citizenship to be included in any immigration deal.

McCarthy spoke to Fox News during his visit to the border in Arizona. He was asked about past statements he made when he ruled out any form of path to citizenship for illegal immigrants as part of an immigration deal. On Thursday, he reaffirmed this position.

“This is so because immigration reform is not possible without first securing the border,” he said. “How can you trust? You see people come one by one, and when you ask them why they tell you, “The president told me to come.”

The Biden administration and congressional Democrats have called for citizenship to be granted to millions of illegal immigrants as part of a reform aimed at fixing what they call a broken immigration system.

MCCARTHY IN ARIZONA SAYS ‘NO ONE BELIEVE’ THAT ADMIN’S BIDEN CLAIM BORDER IS SAFE

February 17, 2023: Speaker Kevin McCarthy speaks with Fox News in Arizona.

The administration unveiled the law on Biden’s first day in office in 2021. At the heart of the bill is an eight-year path to citizenship for illegal immigrants to the US by January 1, 2021, as well as immediate green card eligibility for farm workers. Temporary Protected Status holders and some persons who came to the US as minors, whom activists call “Dreamers”.

Republicans rejected the law for including an amnesty for illegal immigrants, and it showed no sign of Republican support, but the administration continued to push the bill, including Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Majorcas and President Biden.

“America’s border issues will not be resolved until Congress makes a decision. If we do not accept my comprehensive immigration reform, then at least we will accept my plan to provide equipment and officers to guard the border. And a path to citizenship for Dreamers, those on temporary status, farm workers and essential workers,” Biden said during State of the Union.

McCarthy made his final comments during a visit to Cochise County, Arizona, with freshman representatives Juan Tsiscomani, Arizona State, Laurie Chavez-DeRemer, R-Ore State, Jan Kiggans, Virginia State, and Derrick Van Orden, Wisconsin State,

The deputies met with local authorities and took an aerial tour of this part of the border. McCarthy dismissed claims by several administration officials, including Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Majorcas and Vice President Kamala Harris, that the border was “safe.”

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“No one believes that our border is safe, not the border guards, not America,” he said. “Majorcas doesn’t have the integrity to keep saying that.”

The White House reacted to McCarthy’s visit by blaming his political reputation and cited a recent drop in border encounters from an all-time high of 251,000 in December to more than 156,000 in January, which he attributed to new measures introduced last month.

“Perhaps seeing this progress will encourage Republicans in the House of Representatives to do some soul-searching,” White House spokesman Ian Sams said.

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“Why did they oppose the record funding provided by President Biden to strengthen border security and detect record levels of fentanyl? Why don’t they support President Biden’s plan to fund border security now? Why don’t they ask their fellow Republican Attorneys General to stop suing to end the very programs that reduce illegal transfers?” He said. “Republicans in the House of Representatives should spend less time on partisan publicity stunts and more time finding solutions.”

McCarthy dismissed the White House’s claims: “If they had really come here, they would have realized their plan wasn’t working.”

“This is a failure, this is more than a failure, and it is destroying our nation,” he said.