The Laken Riley Act was approved by the House of Representatives on Wednesday following earlier endorsement by the Senate and is now en route to President Donald Trump’s office for his signature, marking a significant legislative victory for the current administration.
As the first bill to be enacted under the Trump administration, the Laken Riley Act has been pushed through by the Republican Party, following their reclaim of control over both congressional chambers and the presidency.
The House of Representatives passed the bill in a 263 to 156 vote on Wednesday, the second time the lower chamber advanced the bill this month.
It passed the House 264 to 159 on Jan. 7. All voting Republicans supported the bill, along with 48 Democrats – two more than the most recent vote.
In a separate bipartisan effort, the GOP-led Senate furthered the bill with a 64 to 35 majority, including provisions for the deportation of undocumented individuals found guilty of assaulting law enforcement officers or causing severe harm or death to another individual.
All the votes against the bill were from Democrats:
The original bill would direct Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers to detain illegal immigrants accused of theft-related crimes. It also would allow states to sue the Department of Homeland Security for harm caused to their citizens because of illegal immigration.
The majority of Democrats were against the bill, arguing that allowing people accused but not convicted of crimes to be deported is a slippery slope. But supporters of the bill point out that people here illegally have already run afoul of U.S. law.
That argument is specious; people who are in the country illegally have already broken the law by their presence. The Laken Riley Act also focuses on illegal immigrants who have committed crimes above and beyond their illegal entry.
