A Democratic lawmaker says Americans “don’t want illegals” and called for a “comprehensive immigration reform.”
During an interview on NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) responded to a question from host Kristen Welker about the southern border being “broken” under President Joe Biden.
“The border’s been broken,” Dingell said. “It was broken under Donald Trump as well. Our immigration reform, we have needed comprehensive immigration reform for decades.”
The Democrats have seen the polls.
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) December 17, 2023
Debbie Dingell: "We don't want illegals" pic.twitter.com/cDLcEJHQzM
“Let me also say, you’ve got small businesses clamoring for people,” Dingell added. “We’ve got caregiving, which is in desperate shape. And, we need to bring, some of these people need to be immigrants, but we don’t want illegals. We don’t want other people coming in.”
Dingell’s words come as Steven Camarota, the research director at the Center for Immigration Studies, provided an estimate that roughly 13 million “gotaways” were in the United States. A “gotaway” is a person who has entered the U.S. illegally and was not apprehended by Customs and Border Protection officers.
Camarota also revealed about 50 million immigrants, both illegal and legal, were in the US. currently.
“We don’t want drugs coming across our border,” Dingell continued. “We need a balanced comprehensive immigration policy.”
Senate Republicans recently blocked a $111 million supplemental funding bill requested by President Joe Biden. Included in the bill was funding for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan, as well as additional funding for border security.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has stressed that further aid to Ukraine would not be approved until the border and national security issues are addressed first.