The Laken Riley Act is roiling the Senate Democratic Conference, as senators believe their party bungled immigration and border security in 2024 and are unhappy about the swift passage of a bill they view as terrible policy. Democratic critics believe the rush to pass it is a political overreaction from Democratic colleagues scrambling to protect themselves. Some Democratic senators are venting frustration about Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) giving a green light to politically vulnerable colleagues to advance the bill without getting an ironclad guarantee that Democrats would have more opportunity to amend the legislation. Those Democratic lawmakers have likened the handling of the bill to a disorganized retreat and warn that it has sparked deep frustration in a caucus still stung from the loss of their majority in November, reports The Hill.
“There is huge frustration that the bill didn’t go to committee on something so consequential,” fumed one Democratic senator who requested anonymity. “There is huge concern because we’re talking about the mandatory imprisonment based on an accusation without a person even being charged, let alone being convicted, and this applies to kids. It’s a sweeping assault on core principles, and it doesn’t even have a judicial review component.” Democrats facing competitive reelections in 2026 and who represent swing states, however, were eager to vote for the bill after President Trump and Republicans bashed their party all year over the murder of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student who was killed by a Venezuelan migrant who entered the U.S. without legal status and was previously arrested in New York and Georgia. The bill passed the Senate on Monday evening. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) joined fellow Democrats in venting frustration over not getting an opportunity to vote on more amendments. “It is bad policy,” he said of the bill that passed the Senate on Monday. “We had an amendment broadly supported by a big cross section of our caucus that would have fixed the bill.”
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