Staff Reports
In what seems like a resurrection of political ambitions, the Laken Riley Act, along with a collection of other Republican messaging bills, is making a comeback now that the GOP controls both the Senate and the incoming Trump presidency. After languishing in obscurity during the last Congress, these bills are set to ride the Republican tidal wave into the legislative spotlight, leaving Democrats scrambling to figure out their next move.
This legislative revival, driven by promises made during campaigns, paints a picture of a very busy week ahead in the Senate. The GOP’s focus on immigration and border security is underscored by the Laken Riley Act, which has been incorporated into a rules package for expeditious processing. With all the bells and whistles of limited debate and no amendments, the House aims to push these bills through while avoiding the trenches of detailed hearings.
In light of the House passage of the Laken Riley Act, @JohnCornyn, Britt, Budd, and others have just reintroduced the Laken Riley Act in their chamber pic.twitter.com/ezrVuvHWBK
— Anna Giaritelli (@Anna_Giaritelli) January 7, 2025
Among the highlights of this ambitious plan is the upcoming sanction bill against the International Criminal Court (ICC) over its warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on alleged war crimes. A brief glance at the nature of these bills reveals a strategic alignment with conservative values, with many aiming to fulfill promises made to voters who want results instead of endless bureaucratic red tape. It’s as if Republicans woke up from a long nap and found a whole batch of their campaign promises sitting on the shelf, just itching to be dusted off and brought into reality.
If this all sounds too good to be true, it might just be. While the Senate has a Republican majority, securing the necessary support to overcome the dreaded 60-vote filibuster will be a Herculean task. The bills that House Republicans see as vital to their agenda may face stiff resistance from a handful of Democrats who still seem to be clinging to their idea of “political morality.” The Democrats have branded these Republican proposals as “empty” and “politically charged,” which might be a novel way of saying they just don’t want to support anything that smells remotely proactive from the conservative camp.
The silver lining? Some Democratic votes are leaking through the party’s rigid stance. Surprisingly, even a few Democrats have jumped on board with the Laken Riley Act, suggesting a glimmer of bipartisan support. However, as the dust settles, the fate of bills like the SAVE Act, which keeps noncitizens from voting, or the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, which ensures that sports categories recognize biological sex at birth, remains uncertain in the Senate. Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s commitments to schedule votes on these controversial topics may be met with raised eyebrows from Democrats, who seem more focused on accusing Republicans of failing to address inflation concerns that they claimed were central to their campaign.
As the Republican agenda gets rolling, the irony is not lost that while Democrats bemoan the lack of attention to inflation, they seem resistant to acknowledging the cultural issues that voters have repeatedly highlighted. In the end, it’s a waiting game as Trump prepares for his presidency, and congressional Republicans balance their list of priorities, which includes confirming more Cabinet nominees, rolling back Biden-era policies, and perhaps—just perhaps—tackling a budget reconciling act before anyone starts to point fingers over their own internal crises. The coming weeks promise spicy political drama as the GOP attempts to implement its agenda amid the hurdles thrown up by an opposition party still reeling from its lack of initiative in the previous Congress.
