Wisconsin Democratic Congressmen Mark Pocan and Congresswoman Gwen Moore voted against passage of the Laken Riley Act on Jan. 7, according to a vote tally published by the U.S. House.
The act toughens immigration enforcement by mandating the federal government detain illegal immigrants committed of certain crimes; it also allows states to sue the federal government for lax immigration enforcement.
The tally says the bill passed with all 216 Republican House members supporting it. There were 159 Democrats who voted “no,” and 48 Democrats who voted “yes.”
The no votes included Pocan and Moore. Every other member of the Wisconsin congressional delegation voted yes. The bill was named after Riley, a Georgia college student who was brutally murdered by a Venezuelan man who was paroled in the US by the Biden Administration. It’s unclear whether the bill will win passage in the U.S. Senate.
According to the U.S. House, the bill “requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to detain certain non-U.S. nationals (aliens under federal law) who have been arrested for burglary, theft, larceny, or shoplifting. The bill also authorizes states to sue the federal government for decisions or alleged failures related to immigration enforcement.”
“Under this bill, must detain an individual who (1) is unlawfully present in the United States or did not possess the necessary documents when applying for admission; and (2) has been charged with, arrested for, convicted of, or admits to having committed acts that constitute the essential elements of burglary, theft, larceny, or shoplifting,” the site continues,” it continues.
According to the Hill, Riley’s killer “avoided a conviction on shoplifting after being sent to a diversion program.” The Hill noted that opponents of the bill argue it affects people who were arrested or charged even if they weren’t convicted yet.
“The bill also authorizes state governments to sue for injunctive relief over certain immigration-related decisions or alleged failures by the federal government if the decision or failure caused the state or its residents harm, including financial harm of more than $100. Specifically, the state government may sue the federal government over a
- decision to release a non-U.S. national from custody;
- failure to fulfill requirements relating to inspecting individuals seeking admission into the United States, including requirements related to asylum interviews;
- failure to fulfill a requirement to stop issuing visas to nationals of a country that unreasonably denies or delays acceptance of nationals of that country;
- violation of limitations on immigration parole, such as the requirement that parole be granted only on a case-by-case basis; or
- failure to detain an individual who has been ordered removed from the United States.”
Wisconsin Democrats Mark Pocan and Gwen Moore also previously voted against a bill that calls for the deportation of illegal immigrants who are convicted of sex crimes, that U.S. House roll call vote confirms.
Pocan did not issue a press release on the vote. Neither did Moore.
