WASHINGTON—The Heritage Foundation’s homeland security team made the following comments today in response to the U.S. Senate parliamentarian’s ruling that Democrats cannot use their mammoth spending bill to ram through a mass amnesty for millions of illegal aliens. Meanwhile, thousands of illegal aliens have flooded the border in Del Rio, Texas, in just the past week and monthly border apprehensions remain at record highs. The experts warn that while the parliamentarian’s ruling is a positive step and should be respected, Senate Democrats may not accept the ruling. 

Chad Wolf, former acting DHS secretary and Heritage visiting fellow: “What we’re seeing in Del Rio is the definition of an open-border policy, and the most inhumane approach to border security possible. We’ve been seeing it for eight months now, but the stark images coming out of Del Rio should outrage every American. The fact that half the U.S. Senate has spent the last several weeks pushing amnesty—via budget reconciliation, no less—at the same time we’re seeing this self-inflicted, unmitigated crisis across our border makes one thing clear: No amount of illegal immigration will ever be enough for the left. The debate over amnesty via reconciliation is settled, and Senate Democrats need to accept the parliamentarian’s ruling. Whether they will is another question, as we’re already seeing.”  

Mark Morgan, former acting CBP commissioner and Heritage visiting fellow: “Americans should be angry. They should be angry at the Biden administration for embracing open-borders policies that have sparked the worst border crisis in American history. They should be angry that Border Patrol has been forced to stop patrolling 224 miles of border in order to deal with these new crises. And they should be angry at senators like Joe Manchin who have pushed a mass amnesty for millions of illegal aliens already allowed to reside in the U.S. with full knowledge of what’s happening in cities like Del Rio. Make no mistake, if Democrats ram amnesty through Congress, this self-inflicted crisis will have no end in sight, as amnesty will act as a massive incentive for continued illegal immigration. Democrats must abandon their mad rush to get amnesty via reconciliation. There are no more bites at the apple.” 

Lora Ries, former acting DHS deputy chief of staff and Heritage senior research fellow: “The American people are tired of being treated as second-class citizens by their own government. They are tired of being told they must completely alter their lives due to COVID, while illegal aliens aren’t even required to be tested for COVID before being released into the United States. They are sick of watching record amounts of drugs pour across our border and into our communities, where more than 93,000 Americans died from overdoses just last year. This is the definition of ‘America last.’ So-called ‘moderate’ lawmakers like Joe Manchin and other Senate Democrats bear some responsibility for the breakdown and the chaos at the border for trying to ram through a mass amnesty. Americans must make clear there will be consequences for this behavior.”