Idaho GOP must be shocked by Trump killing border security. They’ll say so, right? | Opinion
For months, Idaho elected officials have expressed shock and disgust at what they describe as President Joe Biden’s “open borders policy.” Here are just a few examples:
- “Governor Brad Little will join Texas Governor Greg Abbott and 13 other governors at a press conference on the unprecedented actions taken to protect Americans in response to President Joe Biden’s open border policies…,” Little said in a Feb. 1 news release.
- Reps. Mike Simpson and Russ Fulcher voted last month for a resolution urging “President Biden to end his administration’s open-borders policies.”
- “Since President Biden took office, more than 4.7 million illegal immigrants – double the population of Idaho – have been encountered at the southern border. This is a direct result from the president’s open border policies that have catalyzed a full-blown disaster,” said Sen. Jim Risch last March.
- “This ongoing crisis demands a stronger, more effective leadership. Congress must act to secure the border now, as we cannot rely on the Executive Branch to do so,” Sen. Mike Crapo said at the same time.
All of these high-level Republicans must be dismayed this week that Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has declared a $118 billion border bipartisan border security deal negotiated between Senate Republicans and the White House “dead on arrival.”
The deal would make rules on seeking asylum stricter, automatically shut down the border if illegal entry rates exceed specified thresholds and vastly expand border detention capacity, among other things.
It’s probably not the exact deal Republicans would craft if they controlled both chambers of Congress and the White House, but it’s about as good a deal as can be conceived to advance GOP priorities with a slim majority in just one chamber.
It does have one big problem. It would deprive Donald Trump of one of his biggest campaign messages: Elect me to secure the border. That’s why Trump has been lobbying hard to kill the deal.
As Greg Sargent of the New Republic pointed out, the major reason Johnson has decided not to hold a vote is because the bill would almost certainly pass. Then the border wouldn’t be a partisan cudgel but an issue both parties own, a problem both parties came together to attempt to solve.
Idaho officials can be counted on to put policy above politics. If there’s a deal that will increase border security that can pass, they will certainly put that above Trump’s priorities for electoral messaging.
So I expect we’ll hear soon from Little, Simpson, Crapo, Risch, Fulcher and other top GOP elected officials harsh condemnations “former President Trump’s open borders agenda” or “Speaker Mike Johnson’s refusal to address the border crisis.” Because this was always about real problems that affect Idahoans’ daily lives, not just cynical political messaging.
I’ll keep an eye on my inbox.
It takes time to write a press release, that’s all.
Aaaaany minute now.