Many on the right claim the U.S. is being “invaded” by migrants but also want to wait until Donald Trump is elected president again to stop it.

For months, Republicans have shouted from the rooftops about a migrant crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border and how President Joe Biden needs to act to address it, insisting the flow of migrants is an urgent national security threat.

Now many on the right are urging their party to reject the very same things they said were needed to fix the problem, including tougher enforcement measures and a proposal to automatically shut down border crossings when it is overwhelmed. Instead, they appear set on impeaching the top Cabinet official in charge of the border, even though there is no evidence of a crime.

The GOP’s contortions aren’t just grating for Democrats but also on some conservative Republicans who have been deeply involved in crafting bipartisan legislation, which is expected to be unveiled soon, that would overhaul how migrants are processed at the border.

“It is interesting. Republicans four months ago… locked arms together and said, ‘We’re not going to give you money for this. We want a change in law,’” Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.), the GOP’s lead negotiator on a deal pairing immigration changes with assistance to Ukraine and other allies, said on “Fox News Sunday.”

“A few months later, when we’re finally getting to the end, they’re like, ‘Oh, just kidding. I actually don’t want a change in law because it’s a presidential election year,’” he added.

  • paddirn@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    The GOP doesn’t have a platform, they just have a pair of goalposts on wheels.

    • Tolookah@discuss.tchncs.de
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      9 months ago

      Republican goalposts are red due to redshift from them moving away.

      Democratic goalposts are blue because they move closer/easier. (Campaign for full healthcare, barely get out mandated healthcare markets)

      I get that politics are politics, and the right did all they could to kill/maim the ACA, but I needed to complete my light spectrum.

      • paddirn@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        Democrats, despite championing policies that seem to be supported by big chunks of the population are always just one or two votes short of what they need, so then they throw up their hands, “We tried, sorry… Ok, moving on to other business…” Meanwhile, Republicans will have priorities like forced child labor, killing puppies, and adding lead to drinking water that seem to consistently sail through no matter how small their majority. Democrats seem like they’re really ineffective either by just bad luck or on purpose, I’ve never been quite sure.

        • Eldritch@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          You say that like it was some schrewd devious plan on their part. And not the most natural outcome of having a slim majority. Where if only one or two people jump ship. You are unable to bring stuff to the floor for a vote, let alone pass it.

    • themeatbridge@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      This should be expected from conservatives. There are never qny issues or principles, just talking points and scapegoats. Conservativism is the protection and advancement of the self, the in-group that the law protects but does not bind. The “platform,” the issues they choose to care about, are the ones most likely to benefit themselves, either directly or as wedge issues to incite their base of voters and donors.