First on Fox: A group of Republicans in the House of Representatives is seeking to legalize the law Stay in Mexicoa cornerstone of President-elect Donald Trump's border policy during his first term.
Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, a first-term lawmaker, is leading the effort, which was first shared with Fox News Digital on Thursday.
His bill would require the Department of Homeland Security to reinstate the Migrant Protection Protocols, more commonly known as “Remain in Mexico.”
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President-elect Donald Trump speaks at the US-Mexico border on August 22, 2024. (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)
“The American people have given President Trump and Republicans a mandate to secure the border, and Congress must pass the Remain in Mexico Act as a first step to securing our border and fixing the problems Democrats have created in our country,” Gill told Fox News Digital.
The policy, which Trump implemented in January 2019, requires migrants seeking asylum at the southwestern border of the United States to wait for their immigration procedures in Mexico.
He was a federal judge The Biden administration stopped from stopping the program, but officials stopped using it for new cases in mid-2022.
President Biden had called in his election campaign for an end to this policy, which was criticized by human rights groups and left-wing organizations as cruel and inhumane, given the accusations of rape and other crimes that migrants were subjected to while waiting in Mexico.
The ACLU previously said of the policy, “The Remain in Mexico policy, misleadingly called the Migrant Protection Protocols, has created a humanitarian catastrophe at the border and has been the subject of ACLU lawsuits since it was first implemented in Year 2019.
Freshman GOP Rep. Brandon Gill is introducing a bill to codify President-elect Donald Trump's policy on remaining in Mexico. (Andrew Harnick/Getty Images)
However, Remain in Mexico advocates see this as one of the only viable solutions to help cities and towns on the US side of the border, many of which have seen their infrastructure strained by the volume of people crossing illegally or seeking asylum. .
Gil submits his bill about two weeks in advance Trump takes office For his second term.
Codifying the policy into federal law would make it harder for critics to overturn it under a different administration.
Republicans in Congress are rushing to prepare for Trump's return with a series of conservative legislative proposals that have been presented since the start of the 119th Congress last Friday.
Trump and Republican senators gather at the Capitol and weigh strategy on budget, taxes and borders
Authorities accompany two suspects after the death of an agent of the National Migration Institute, in Samalayuca, on the outskirts of Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, on December 30, 2024. (Reuters/Jose Luis Gonzalez)
A large number of these bills are related to immigration And the bordersIt is an issue that proved important for the Republican Party in the November elections.
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The House passed its first bill on Tuesday, aimed at enabling federal officials to detain immigrants accused or convicted of theft-related crimes. More than 40 Democrats voted in favor of the bill, along with all incumbent Republicans.
Trump indicated that he hopes to have an active first 100 days in office, especially with Republicans controlling the House of Representatives and the Senate.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
