Immigration in Review, March 2024
Senate fixture Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) resigned his leadership position but will retain his seat at least until his term ends in January 2027. McConnell has served in the Senate since 1985 and has held various positions in and around Washington D.C. since 1968, a 55-year period.
McConnell has worked at cross purposes with GOP enforcement advocates; most will not miss his absence in a leadership. McConnell’s immigration voting record is a mixed bag that’s been weak on ending immigration incentives like chain migration, the unnecessary visa lottery, initiating stronger guidelines on admitting refugees and asylees, and reducing harmful employment-based visas that displace American workers.
The highly ballyhooed 2022 “Red Tsunami” that the GOP promised to voters never happened, in large part because McConnell didn’t endorse or help finance qualified candidates in Arizona, Nevada, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Georgia, five seats listed as toss-ups in the days preceding the election, that ultimately went Democrat.
On border security, voters’ top issue going into November 2024, McConnell has shown a fervent interest in defending Ukraine but has been unable to summon the same passion for the protecting the Southwest. McConnell, in a reference to passing additional Ukraine funding, said:
“This is a moment for swift and decisive action to prevent further loss of life, and to impose real consequences on the tyrants who have terrorized the people of Ukraine and of Israel. And right now, the Senate has a chance to produce supplemental assistance that will help us do exactly that. Enemies abroad will be watching closely and waiting for America to falter. Only our concrete and credible support can deter our adversaries in the future and restore security.”
McConnell made his statement as if open borders have not brought deaths to citizens, as if the cartels aren’t tyrannical, and as if our enemies in terror-sponsoring nations haven’t taken advantage of catch-and-release to enter the interior. In a show of his support of Ukraine, McConnell shamelessly visited Kyiv and welcomed President Volodymyr Zelensky in Washington.
The three most likely candidates to replace McConnell have stronger immigration voting records than McConnell. First, Texas’ John Cornyn might have the inside track since he represents a border state, an area under an illegal aliens’ invasion. Cornyn has been in the Senate since 2003 and is a former Texas Supreme Court associate justice and was Texas’ attorney general. Cornyn is weak however, on reducing employment-based visas, a scourge for American workers.
Second, South Dakota’s John Thune, who has been in the Senate since 2005. Thune led the Senate Republican Conference for many years and headed the Senate Republican Policy Committee, both consensus-building roles that gave him experience navigating the various GOP factions. His immigration grade is solid throughout.
Third, Wyoming’s John Barrasso, is another Senator with an outstanding immigration grade. Since Barrasso was appointed to the Senate in 2007 to replace Sen. Craig Thomas after his death, he has moved up the ranks of Republican Senate leadership, chaired the Republican Policy Committee after Thune and then in 2019 took over the Senate Republican Conference when Thune became whip. Barrasso earned his M.D. degree from the Georgetown University School of Medicine and, before he entered politics, was the rodeo physician for the Professional Cowboys Rodeo Association.
Other candidates may throw their hat into the ring, most notably Arkansas’ Tom Cotton who may be the most dependable senator on immigration enforcement. The leadership situation is volatile, and many months remain before a new speaker is elected. But knowing that the leading candidates are supportive of sound immigration policy is comforting.
Joe Guzzardi is an Institute for Sound Public Policy analyst. Contact him at jguzzardi@ifspp.org