This archive report was first published on 29 September 2019.
Published on September 29, 2019, a fact-finding tour by lawmakers to the US-Mexico border has yielded moments of raw emotion and human suffering, prompting passionate testimony and legislative proposals. However, the tours have failed to shift lawmakers' views on the immigration crisis.
Lawmakers from both parties have visited the border, but their experiences have been shaped by their individual perspectives. Democrats tend to focus on the humanitarian side, while Republicans emphasize the enforcement side.
Representative Andy Biggs of Arizona organized multiple summer trips to focus on the enforcement side, giving lawmakers the chance to tour fragments of the border wall and speak with local law enforcement and property owners. In contrast, Representative Veronica Escobar of Texas has led groups to her El Paso district, organizing interviews with migrants detained in Juárez, Mexico, and taking her colleagues to the road between the two countries.
Despite the emotional experiences, lawmakers often return with unchanged minds or drastically different perspectives. The bigger question of how to avoid having the immigration crisis languish remains unanswered.
Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma reflected on his recent visit, saying, “The goal was, everybody could see it and say, ‘O.K., we’ve all seen it. We can come to a common set of conclusions on how to be able to resolve it,’” but added, “But I’m not hearing that.”
Lessons Learned? ¶
The outcome of these border tours remains uncertain, with the Democrat-led House approving two bills to hold the Department of Homeland Security to higher accountability and medical standards for immigrant holding facilities. However, the Republican-held Senate is unlikely to pass these bills.
