Arnold Mooney: Mo Brooks — The real deal on immigration

Donald Trump recently endorsed Representative Mo Brooks in his bid to become the next senator from Alabama.

It’s not hard to see why. The President made immigration the premier issue of his presidency and successfully curbed the number of migrants — both legal and illegal — that crossed our borders. Similarly, Brooks has spent his career in the U.S. House of Representatives championing immigration enforcement policies that put American workers first.

Unfortunately, Trump’s policies mostly relied on executive actions, most of which Joe Biden has rescinded. The GOP needs the force of legislation to create long-lasting change. With Mo Brooks in the Senate, the odds of generational reform to our immigration system would increase exponentially.

Since Sen. Richard Shelby announced his impending retirement in February, several Republicans have either formally entered the 2022 Senate race or strongly considered it. But Brooks is a cut above the rest because of his track record on immigration.

In his kickoff speech for his Senate campaign, Brooks repeatedly hit on the theme of immigration enforcement. “America is nothing without borders. No country is,” he said. He went on to explain how a porous southern border harms Americans and their pocketbooks.

He’s backed up the talk with action in his time representing Huntsville in the House. He just introduced a mandatory E-Verify bill, which would force all employers to confirm via an electronic database that their employees can work in the United States legally.

That is a good thing for working-class citizens in Alabama and beyond. Illegal immigrants compete directly with them for jobs, stressing resources for communities, including schools, public safety, key infrastructure, and healthcare to name a few. According to Harvard economist George Borjas, illegal immigrants reduce native-born workers’ wages by a cumulative $118 billion every year.

Immigration is surely a sticking point for any Senate candidate over the next 18 months. Biden created a crisis at the southern border immediately after entering office by signaling the United States would let in anyone. Hundreds of thousands of people from Central America are sitting at the border. And his new plan to grant amnesty to 11 million illegal immigrants will invite even more chaos at our southern border, not to mention unleashing unprecedented competition for working-class jobs.

To stop these absurd policies, the Senate needs a voice like Mo’s. It does not have many right now. Mitch McConnell may be good at confirming conservative judges, but neither he nor his leadership team have come out as strongly against Biden’s amnesty plan as Mo. While they appeared annoyed when Biden announced the proposal, Mo vigorously condemned it. “The economic result of granting amnesty and citizenship to illegal aliens is horrific for American citizens,” he said. “American workers will be pummeled as they suffer from lost jobs and suppressed wages.”

Mo Brooks isn’t just good on immigration; he is one of the best in Congress. He received an A+ rating from the non-partisan NumbersUSA (NUSA), an organization that supports immigration restriction in order to create economic stability for working-class Alabamians and Americans. NUSA calls him a “True Reformer,” a designation given to only a handful of other lawmakers.

In the Senate, Mo would have a powerful platform to take on Biden’s and other Democrats’ backward immigration proposals. Alabama voters need to choose wisely.

Arnold Mooney is a member of the Alabama House of Representatives, representing the 43rd district since 2014.