More than a dozen House Republicans have now thrown their support behind Rep. Maria Salazar’s (R-FL) “Dignity Act,” which would give amnesty to most of the nation’s 11 to 22 million illegal aliens while expanding legal immigration levels by funneling more foreign workers into American jobs.
Salazar first introduced the amnesty scheme in 2022, amidst the largest wave of illegal immigration to the United States in recorded history under President Joe Biden.
The bill, at first glance, would offer amnesty to the roughly 10.5 million illegal aliens who lived in the United States prior to 2021, so long as they meet some requirements, while more than doubling employment-based legal immigration and blowing up foreign student pipelines in the hopes of giving special corporate interests a continuous flow of foreign labor to hire.
For years, the bill has continuously failed to gain traction in Congress, but recently picked up support from 19 House Republicans and 20 House Democrats.
Those Republicans who are now co-sponsors of the Dignity Act are:
- Rep. Michael Lawler (R-NY)
- Rep. David G. Valadao (R-CA)
- Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA)
- Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA)
- Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA)
- Rep. Gabe Evans (R-CO)
- Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-IN)
- Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE)
- Rep. Young Kim (R-CA)
- Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL)
- Rep. James Baird (R-IN)
- Rep. Lloyd Smucker (R-PA)
- Del. Kimberlyn King-Hinds (R-MP-At Large)
- Del. James Moylan (R-GU-At Large)
- Rep. Monica De La Cruz (R-TX)
- Rep. Nick LaLota (R-NY)
- Rep. Neal Dunn (R-FL)
- Rep. Jennifer Kiggans (R-VA)
- Rep. Zachary Nunn (R-IA)
These Republicans join the likes of Democrat Reps. Henry Cuellar (TX), Jim Costa (CA), Thomas Suozzi (NY), Adriano Espaillat (NY), and Salud Carbajal (CA), among others.
During an interview on Fox News with Laura Ingraham, Lawler vigorously defended his support for the amnesty bill and struggled to answer how federal immigration officials would enforce certain provisions of the bill to prevent every illegal alien in the U.S. from securing the amnesty.
The amnesty scheme — in exchange for nationwide mandatory E-Verify and requirements that a border wall be constructed and completed, which is already in federal law under the Secure Fence Act of 2006 — gives a path to citizenship for an estimated 2.5 million so-called “DREAMer” illegal aliens, those illegal aliens who are eligible and enrolled in former President Obama’s executive amnesty.
In addition, the bill freezes deportations for illegal aliens considered “prima facie eligible” and offers a 7-year renewable legal status to the roughly 10.5 million illegal aliens who have lived in the U.S. before 2021, so long as they have not committed certain crimes and pay taxes and fines.
Illegal aliens can have committed multiple misdemeanors and still secure the amnesty, which also waives into the program those who have already been deported from the U.S. but who meet the amnesty’s requirements.
Perhaps most consequentially, the bill more than doubles the number of employment-based green cards that are awarded to foreign workers every year — a key provision for special corporate interests like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a proponent of the bill, who lobby annually for more foreign labor to keep wages stagnant and low.
The bill likewise allows all foreign students at American universities to remain in the U.S. with an American job after graduation, drastically increasing foreign labor competition against American graduates who fight for entry-level jobs, and codifies the Optional Training Program (OPT), which gives businesses a discount for hiring foreign college graduates over Americans.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at [email protected].
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