Senators Katie Britt and John Fetterman joined Fox News on Tuesday in a show of bipartisan support for the Laken Riley Act hours after it passed the House of Representatives. The legislation, sponsored by both lawmakers, would mandate that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrest illegal immigrants who commit theft, burglary, larceny, or shoplifting offenses and require those who commit such crimes to be detained until they are removed from the United States.
Britt (R-Montgomery), who introduced identical legislation in the Senate, told host Brett Baier that she believes the bill has the support of a majority of voters across the country.
“So I think we’ve seen this litigated over the last four years time and time again,” said Britt. “And I think on November 5th, the American people delivered a verdict and said, we want secure borders. We want you to prioritize the safety and security of Americans over open border policies. And so this is a common sense piece of legislation, obviously named after a remarkable young woman that was taken from this earth way too soon.”
She noted the increase in momentum the bill has going into the Senate and emphasized the legislature’s commitment to “producing results for the American people.
“And I think that the bipartisan support that you saw in the House, I am really hopeful, will carry on into the Senate. And we’re already seeing good traction from our Senate colleagues interested in coming on board.”
“At the end of the day, we’re going to do whatever it takes to produce results for the American people,” said Britt. “There’s a lot that we’ve got to do. When you’re looking at the border when you’re looking at energy, when you’re looking at creating a strong defense, and when you’re looking at creating economic prosperity for all Americans. And so whatever road gets us to that result is the one that we’re going to take.”
On November 5th, the American people delivered a verdict and said, we want secure borders.
They said we want you to prioritize the safety and security of Americans.
The Laken Riley Act will do just that. The House did their part, let's pass it in the Senate. pic.twitter.com/IpnrHKf5CR
— Senator Katie Boyd Britt (@SenKatieBritt) January 8, 2025
Fetterman said that the legislation is pragmatic.
“It’s really common sense and I’d like to remind everybody that we have hundreds and hundreds of thousands of migrants here illegally that have been convicted of crimes,” said Fetterman. “If you’re here illegally and you’re committing crimes and those things, I don’t know why anybody thinks that it’s controversial that they all need to go.
“There’s 47 of us in the Senate and if we can’t pull up with with seven votes, if we can’t get at least seven out of 47, if we can’t then that’s the reason why we lost.”
ICE reported tens of thousands of migrants with criminal records — homicide or sexual assault.
425,000 have criminal records in total and should be deported.
I support a secure border.
I support a legal path for Dreamers.
I support the Laken Riley Act. https://t.co/elEuIByd6s
— U.S. Senator John Fetterman (@SenFettermanPA) January 7, 2025
The Laken Riley Act was introduced in the 118th Congress after Laken Riley, a nursing student from Georgia who was murdered by an illegal alien while on a morning run. Prior to passing the House yesterday, Democrats had consistently and inexplicably blocked the legislation for months.
Austen Shipley is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on X @ShipleyAusten
