GOP Rep. Tony Gonzales on Republican anti-immigrant message bills: “Anyone who thinks a 3 page anti-immigration bill with 0% chance of getting signed into law is going to solve the border crisis should be buying beach front property in AZ”
Washington, DC – This week, Republicans are set to continue their ongoing string of anti-immigrant stunts, photo ops, and field hearings at the border. In the process, they’re likely to again mainstream the deadly white nationalist “invasion” and “replacement” conspiracies; advance pernicious and false talking points blaming the fentanyl crisis on migrants; and elevate the political attack and lie that the border is “open” under Biden – disinformation that is a gift to smugglers and cartels.
All of the above moves us farther from the immigration and border solutions we need, as even some Republican voices are acknowledging. As Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) tweeted late last week:
“Anyone who thinks a 3 page anti-immigration bill with 0% chance of getting signed into law is going to solve the border crisis should be buying beach front property in AZ”
In a related interview with The Washington Examiner, Rep. Gonzales further called out fellow Republicans for their relentless and politicized anti-immigrant approach – continuing his criticism of fellow Texas House GOP member Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), whose radical anti-asylum legislation was supposed to be first order of business for House Republicans, but was scuttled due to intra-GOP discomfort. As Rep. Gonzales stated in the interview:
“‘There’s a reason why we haven’t gotten significant border security done and why we haven’t seen significant immigration reform done. It is in the interest of many politicians to have this crisis continue to flare up. … Others can posture, and others can drop bills that are messaging and blame the other side … I don’t have that luxury.’
Gonzalez, whose district is on the farthest southeast part of the state and runs along the Gulf of Mexico, chided Republicans atop the House Committee on Energy and Commerce for choosing to hold a hearing in his district Wednesday night without telling him in advance that the committee would be on his home turf.
‘This partisan hearing was organized in secret and undercuts any meaningful bipartisan conversations,’ Gonzalez said in a statement issued late Wednesday evening. ‘I urge the Chairwoman and Republican Leadership to stop using South Texas for political theater and engage in meaningful conversations on how to adequately address the fentanyl crisis, fix our immigration system and deliver actual results. Do it for the constituents that elected us.’”
According to Douglas Rivlin, Director of Communications for America’s Voice:
“As Republicans continue holding border photo ops and hearings that mainstream dangerous lies and conspiracies instead of proposing any solutions, at least one Republican member of the House is questioning the anti-immigrant GOP madness. Rep. Gonzales pegged it: buying ocean front property in Arizona is more likely to happen than passage of crazy anti-immigrant legislation proposed by House radicals. We hope the GOP listens to some of their own members and stops embarrassing themselves with border photo ops that do nothing to solve the problem, but does generate hateful rhetoric directed at hard working immigrants.”
