Congress Must Fund the Border and Enforce the Law—No More Excuses

The current flashpoint is Texas’ SB4, the 2023 law creating a state offense for illegal entry and authorizing state judges to order migrants back across the border. In March 2024, the Supreme Court allowed SB4 to take effect briefly, only for the Fifth Circuit to block it again in United States v. Texas as litigation continued.

That legal whiplash is the story of the border under Biden: chaos at the line, confusion in the courts, and abdication in the executive branch.

States are acting because the federal government refuses to do its basic job. Article I gives Congress authority over immigration, and the executive branch is supposed to enforce the laws Congress passes. Instead, we get mass parole, selective enforcement, and constant “processing” that functions as permission to stay.

The White House’s posture has been clear since it tried to terminate “Remain in Mexico” (Migrant Protection Protocols). In Biden v. Texas (2022), the Supreme Court said the administration could end MPP, and the administration did—despite the obvious pull factor.

The result has been predictable: more migrants released into the interior, more strain on local budgets, and more leverage for smugglers.

The administration insists it has “tools,” but it uses them backward. The May 2023 end of Title 42 removed a fast expulsion mechanism without replacing it with a credible deterrent, and the promised “lawful pathways” became a marketing plan.

The CBP One app and large-scale parole programs may be convenient for Washington, but they have not restored control.

Congress had a chance to reset the table and blew it. The Senate’s border package earlier this year—anchored by the Emergency National Security Supplemental Act (S. 4361) and its border title—mixed some enforcement improvements with a foreign-aid vehicle and escape hatches that would have normalized high flows.

Republicans were right to reject a deal that treated today’s crisis as the new normal.

Still, rejecting a bad bill is not a plan. House Republicans passed the Secure the Border Act of 2023 (H.R. 2) with strong reforms—finishing physical barriers, tightening asylum, expanding detention capacity, and limiting parole abuse.

The Senate Democrats shelved it, and the administration pretended it never existed.

Here is the core truth Republicans must say plainly: A border without consequences is not a border—it is an invitation. Enforcement is not cruelty; it is the minimum duty a sovereign nation owes its citizens, its legal immigrants, and its future. The political class that shrugs at illegal entry is telling working Americans that rules are for suckers.

The asylum system is the pressure valve that has been turned into a highway. By statute, asylum is for people fleeing targeted persecution, not anyone who arrives and prefers our economy to theirs.

Congress should raise the credible-fear threshold, require applicants to seek protection in the first safe country, and mandate prompt adjudication with mandatory removal for fraudulent claims.

Republicans should also stop tolerating parole as a shadow immigration system. Parole under 8 U.S.C. § 1182(d)(5) is supposed to be case-by-case for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit, not an administrative workaround for millions.

Congress should cap parole numerically, require reporting to Congress by category, and create a cause of action for states harmed by mass parole.

The courts have become an arena for policy-by-injunction, and Republicans should not fear the fight. In DHS v. Regents of the University of California (2020), the Supreme Court showed how procedural missteps can sink big moves like DACA rescission even when the underlying policy is lawful.

That means the next Republican administration must build enforcement on clean rulemaking, tight statutory authority, and disciplined execution—not improvisation.

Border security is also national security, and fentanyl makes the case in human terms. The CDC has repeatedly reported fentanyl driving tens of thousands of overdose deaths annually, and every community knows the names behind those numbers. No serious country shrugs as transnational criminal organizations exploit a porous border and overwhelmed ports of entry.

But enforcement alone is not enough if Republicans want durable control. We need legal, verified work migration that serves our economy without rewarding lawbreaking—paired with universal E-Verify, real penalties for employers who cheat, and an end to sanctuary-city nullification. If jobs are audited and eligibility is enforced, the economic magnet weakens without criminalizing everyday life.

They should also legislate clarity on state-federal roles. States cannot replace federal immigration policy, but they should have explicit authority to cooperate with ICE, to transport detainees under federal supervision, and to sue when federal non-enforcement imposes direct fiscal harm.

The point is not vigilante federalism; it is restoring accountability when Washington fails.

What We Do Next Republicans should unify around a simple message: control first, reform second, and never reward illegal entry. Put H.R. 2 back on the table as the baseline, not a bargaining chip, and demand the Senate vote on it. Any legalization conversation must be years away and conditioned on verified enforcement benchmarks—E-Verify, detention space, removals that actually happen, and an asylum system that is not a loophole.

The next Republican president, if elected, should issue day-one directives to end mass parole, restore interior enforcement, and prioritize removal of recent illegal entrants and criminal aliens. But Congress cannot outsource this forever; it must write laws that bind the executive and fund the capacity to execute them.

The border will not fix itself, and voters should not accept speeches in place of action.

This Christmas Eve, Americans deserve a government that protects the country they love. Republicans should make 2026 the year Washington finally proves it can enforce the border, uphold the law, and honor legal immigration at the same time. Do it plainly, do it firmly, and do it now.