Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., asked his Republican colleagues in Congress on Sunday to give the Trump administration additional funding so that the president may carry out his plan of mass deportations.
This is the Republican Party’s question. Although we discuss doing this, we lack the necessary resources. In an appearance on NBC News Meet the Press, Graham stated, “We haven’t given the Trump team the resources.”
One of President Donald Trump’s main campaign slogans was mass deportation. He made many promises throughout his stump speech to begin the biggest deportation campaign in American history, frequently stating that he would deport all 11 million undocumented immigrants thought to be in the country.
Trump downplayed worries about the cost of this endeavor as soon as the election was over, telling NBC News in a post-election interview in November, It has nothing to do with the price tag.
“It’s not really,” he continued, “because we have no other option.” There is no cost when individuals have committed murder and homicide, when drug lords have wrecked nations, and now they intend to return there because they want to leave.
However, in recent weeks, Tom Homan, Trump’s chosen border czar, has told conservative media that greater funding from Congress is required to carry out Trump’s campaign pledge.
During an interview on Fox Business Sunday Morning Futures in December, Homan stated that the minimum amount is $86 billion. He also added that although this operation will initially be costly, the American taxpayer will ultimately save a significant amount of money on taxes.
Homan stated, “We have to have the resources to do the job,” in an interview with Fox News in November.
“We need to give Tom Homan the money now to execute the plan that he’s come up with, and without congressional funding, this is going to hit a wall,” Graham told Meet the Press moderator Kristen Welker on Sunday, emphasizing the importance of this issue.
Graham also supported the idea of paying Trump’s plan through the reconciliation process, which gives the Senate a simple majority to enact some tax and funding-related legislation.
Therefore, we must reconcile two bills. $100 billion for the border and $200 billion for national security should be included in the first bill. According to Graham, provide Tom with the means to carry out a mass deportation plan.
Experts have questioned the administration’s capacity to deport more than 10 million individuals, particularly in the course of a single presidential term, despite Homan’s pledge to utilize increased cash to pay for more Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and more detention beds.
On Sunday, Graham appeared to concur that deporting all illegal residents of the United States would be logistically challenging.
“I don’t think they’ll deport 11 million people,” he remarked. However, he identified specific categories of unauthorized immigrants, such as those convicted of various offenses, who might be given priority for deportation.
Graham added that hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants have been found guilty of major crimes, and that they are planning to deport those who are involved in criminal gangs.
In a subsequent interview on ABC’s “This Week,” Homan reiterated Graham’s assertion that the Trump administration may be unable to deport 11 million people due to budgetary constraints.
“I’m being realistic,” responded Homan. “We can use the money we have to the best of our abilities. Our goal is to be as efficient as possible, and the more money we have, the more we can do that.”