Republicans Have Plan To Upend Legal Immigration

Republicans in Congress are introducing a plan to upend legal immigration in the United States.

Immigration remains a sticking point in Congress that has sharply divided Democrats, who have pushed for humanitarian-focused approaches to immigration issues, and Republicans, who have emphasized stronger border protection policies. For decades, legislators have found little common ground on the issue, which has made headlines amid recent rises in migrant arrivals at the U.S.-Mexico border.

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 U.S. Customs and Border Protection data.

Arizona Republican Congressman Eli Crane, a member of the conservative Freedom Caucus, is proposing a bill that would change the way the U.S. approaches legal immigration, he announced on Tuesday.

"The current family-sponsored visa system has resulted in endless chains of foreign nationals overwhelming our immigration system. Worse, it further incentivizes illegal immigration by encouraging distant relatives of immigrants to arrive and reside illegally in the U.S. while they wait for a visa to become available," Crane said in a statement to Newsweek.

He said the bill would change the way family-sponsored immigration visas are issued in the U.S. by limiting " family-sponsored visa eligibility to only spouses and children."

It would also allow for "exceptions in special circumstances to care for aging parents," he said.

Presently, the U.S. Department of State offers two types of family-based immigrant visas, according to its website.

Immediate Relative visas are "based on a close family relationship with a U.S. citizen, such as a spouse, child or parent," and the number of visas offered is not limited each fiscal year.

Family Preference visas are for "specific, more distant, family relationships with a U.S. citizen and some specified relationships with a Lawful Permanent Resident," and are limited each fiscal year.

Reps. Andy Biggs of Arizona, Bob Good of Virginia, Mary Miller of Illinois, Bill Posey of Florida and Matt Rosendale of Montana are co-sponsoring the bill, Crane wrote on X.

Rosendale wrote to X, "I am proud to co-sponsor this bill led by my good friend, @RepEliCrane. We MUST put an end to the current immigration policies that allow illegals to take advantage of the family-sponsored visa system and invade our country by the millions!"

However, it remains unclear whether the bill would receive enough support to pass the House of Representatives. Due to the GOP's narrow margin, nearly every Republican would have to vote for the bill.

Republicans can afford only two defections on any legislation without garnering some Democratic votes, and it remains unknown if any Democrats would support such conservative legislation.

Regardless, even if it passes the House, it would face daunting odds of passing the Democratic-controlled Senate or being signed into law by President Joe Biden.

The bill was previously introduced in June 2022 by former Rep. Jody Hice, a Republican who represented Georgia's 10th District in Congress. At the time, eight other Republicans co-sponsored the bill, but it was never brought to a formal vote.

Newsweek has reached out to the offices of Crane, House Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries for comment via email.