Mike Johnson Floats Theory About Biden's Border Decision

House Speaker Mike Johnson floated a new theory on Friday about President Joe Biden's decision-making about the U.S.-Mexico border, questioning if he's the one making the final call.

"I cannot understand why President Biden would not use his existing executive authority, that he has right now, to stop this," he said while appearing on Fox Business Network's Mornings with Maria Bartiromo. "He won't. He knows he has the authority, we've documented it for him...I don't think he's allowed to do it."

Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said he wasn't "sure" Biden was the one making the decision, adding, "I think it's staff around him and they're pushing him to keep the border open."

The House speaker said that if Biden was to take executive authority to secure the border, it could reduce the flow of migrants crossing by 70 percent. "I genuinely believe that originally the idea was to bring people in, open the border, have the flow come in and turn them into voters, there's no other reason that seems to make sense, but now it's completely out of control and it's destroying every community in the country, every state is a border state now, we have to stop this madness," Johnson said.

The Context:

Over the past few weeks, Republican lawmakers have continued to criticize Biden's policies and the influx of migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border. Texas Governor Greg Abbott has been in a feud with the federal government over an order calling for the removal of razor wire at the border. Over 20 fellow Republican governors have sided with Abbott in his fight with the Biden administration.

The U.S. Senate has been negotiating legislation that focuses on the border and funding to Ukraine amid its ongoing war with Russia.

Meanwhile, Johnson has indicated that the GOP-led House is unlikely to approve the possible Senate border deal.

What We Know:

There were more than 2.4 million encounters at the U.S.-Mexico border during the 2023 fiscal year, up from roughly 1.7 million in 2021, according to data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

During a speech on the House floor this week, Johnson spoke about the Senate border negotiations and said, "From what we've heard, this so-called deal does not include transformational policy changes needed to actually stop the border catastrophe."

Johnson also spoke with ABC News earlier this week and said, "From what we've seen, clearly, what's been suggested in this bill is not enough to secure the border."

Newsweek reached out to the White House via email for comment.

Views:

In response to Johnson's remarks on the bill failing in the House, Senator Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, said it's "an entirely foolish proposition" to continue negotiating in the Senate, The Hill reported.

"The Speaker of the House has been unequivocal that the Senate bill is dead on arrival in the House. So I asked my colleagues why on Earth would they be pushing a bill that divides the Republican conference, that unites all the Senate Democrats and has zero chance of ever passing into law," Cruz said, according to The Hill.

Biden has said "I've done all I can do" when recently asked about the border.

"Just give me the power. Give me the border patrol. Give me the people. The judges. Give me the people who can stop this and make it work right," he said while speaking with reporters this week.

What's Next:

In addition to criticizing Biden's border policies, House Republicans are also seeking to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, saying that he refused to comply with federal laws relating to the southern border.

"In large part because of his unlawful conduct, millions of aliens have illegally entered the United States on an annual basis with many unlawfully remaining in the United States," the articles of impeachment against Mayorkas said.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) called the impeachment attempt, "unconstitutional" and "evidence-free" in a statement shared with Newsweek on Sunday afternoon.

Update, 2/2/24, 8:20 a.m. EST: This story has been updated with further information and to reflect that Newsweek reached out to the White House for comment.

Update, 2/2/24, 8:35 a.m. EST: This story has been updated with further information.