A group of 13 Democratic senators sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., saying they were willing to provide votes for legislation to address “pressing border security and immigration needs."
The letter’s signers, led by Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., said they “see a need for strong, commonsense, and fair immigration enforcement accompanied by the necessary resources to effectively secure our borders.”
Co-signers include Sens. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., Gary Peters, D-Mich., and Mark Warner, D-Va., all of whom may face challenging re-elections in 2026, as well as freshmen Sens. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., and Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich. Gallego co-sponsored the Laken Riley Act that passed the Senate earlier this week, which would require federal officials to detain and potentially deport undocumented migrants accused — but not necessarily convicted — of various nonviolent and violent offenses. The other Democratic co-sponsor, Sen. John Fetterman, D-Penn., did not sign the letter sent Wednesday.
The 13 votes, combined with most or all of 53 Republican votes, would be enough to reach the Senate's 60-vote threshold for overcoming a filibuster. Congressional Republicans are already preparing a slew of legislation to enable President Donald Trump's immigration agenda, which includes promises of sending federal agents into major cities to begin mass deportations, and an executive order to end birthright citizenship for the children of undocumented migrants.
The letter, which hinted at Democratic priorities to protect farm workers and children brought illegally into the U.S. as minors, argued that a bipartisan approach would be most effective after the issues have “gone unaddressed for far too long under both Democratic- and Republican-controlled government."
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