The Senate has advanced the Laken Riley Act with a decisive 84-9 vote, easily surpassing the 60-vote threshold needed to open debate. While this is an undeniable victory for advocates of stricter immigration enforcement, it’s far too soon to celebrate. The vote merely sets the stage for debate and potential amendments, not final passage — and you can bet that many Democrats who voted to invoke cloture will ultimately oppose the bill.
The Laken Riley Act, named after the Georgia nursing student murdered by an illegal immigrant, would require ICE to detain undocumented individuals involved in theft-related crimes and empower state attorneys general to sue the federal government for failing to enforce immigration laws. While all Senate Republicans supported the motion to advance the bill, nine Democrats voted against it, including well-known leftists like Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Cory Booker (D-NJ). Notably, six Democrats and one Republican didn’t vote at all.
“This is an important issue. We should have a debate and amendments,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.,) said. “To remind my colleagues, this is not a vote on the bill itself. It is a motion to proceed, a vote that says we should have a debate and should have amendments.”
According to NBC News, some Democrats “expressed openness to supporting the legislation as the party recalibrates its outlook on immigration after it was pummeled over the issue politically.”
Democrats in competitive states and border areas appear to recognize the shifting political winds, with voters increasingly demanding tougher border policies and accountability for criminal actions by illegal immigrants. Sens. Ruben Gallego (Ariz.), Mark Kelly (Ariz.), John Fetterman (Pa.), Jon Ossoff (Ga.), Elissa Slotkin (Mich.), and Jacky Rosen (Nev.) have all openly endorsed the legislation.
Some Democrats are claiming the existing bill is poorly written and needs amendments to make it better.
A Senate aide said Democrats are considering amending the language to narrow the threshold for what triggers ICE detention of an undocumented person. Currently, it covers anyone who “is charged with, is arrested for, is convicted of, admits having committed, or admits committing acts which constitute the essential elements of any burglary, theft, larceny, or shoplifting offense.”
“Getting it to a better place, I think, to make people feel more comfortable that, like, this really is just going to target the people doing bad s--- and not used in a potentially nefarious way,” the aide said, emphasizing that Democrats intend to “engage in a serious way” to improve it, not make “pie in the sky” requests.
The Senate Democratic aide said the party has been willing to engage on tougher border laws for a while, saying, “This is where voters continue to move, and good elected officials continue to listen to them.”
It’s hard to see how any amendments could make the legislation clearer. This feels more like a pretext for Democrats to justify opposing the bill or a strategic move to introduce significant changes that would send the legislation back to the House, delaying its passage. Alternatively, it could be an effort to dilute the bill or load it with pork.
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It’s clear that the Laken Riley Act is part of a broader Republican strategy to force Democrats into politically tough votes on immigration — a key issue during the 2024 elections that voters are likely to expect action on or before the 2026 midterm elections. For now, the bill has cleared one procedural hurdle, but the real test will come when it’s time for an up-or-down vote. If history is any guide, most Democrats will retreat to their partisan corners when it matters most, despite their symbolic support for advancing debate.
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