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The US Senate on Monday approved the Laken Riley Act, making it the first piece of legislation passed by the upper chamber after US President Donald Trump took over the White House. According to The Hill, 64 senators voted in favour of the bill while 35 voted against it. 12 Democrats ended up supporting all the Republicans to ensure that the legislation passes with a clear majority.
The bill mandates the federal detention of illegal immigrants who are accused of theft and burglary, among other things. The legislation was seen as a priority for Republicans after the immigration crisis turned out to be a major talking point for the Trump campaign.
“This legislation will ensure that illegal aliens who steal or assault a law enforcement officer are detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement instead of being allowed out on the streets,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune said on the floor before the voting commenced. “I’m looking forward to getting this legislation to the president’s desk," he added.
About the Laken Riley Bill
According to The Hill, Democrats who voted in favour of the bill were Senators John Fetterman, Ruben Gallego, Maggie Hassan, Mark Kelly, Jon Ossoff, Raphael Warnock, Gary Peters, Jacky Rosen, Catherine Cortez Masto, Jeanne Shaheen, Elissa Slotkin and Mark Warner. The bill was named after Laken Riley, a college student who was killed in Athens by a Venezuelan migrant.
The migrant was arrested for shoplifting before the attack and paroled in the US. The bill was on the Senate floor for over a week. Last week, the upper chamber approved a proposal from Sen. John Cornyn to add the assault of a law enforcement officer to the list of offences that would lead to detainment.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, the bill is estimated to cost nearly $27 billion to implement during the first year. Many insisted that the bill would be hard to implement due to a lack of resources. “This bill makes the country less safe, not more safe. It’s a joke,” said Sen. Chris Murphy (Conn.), the lead Democratic negotiator on the bipartisan border deal that was spurned by conservatives last year. “It claims to be locking people up and then allocates no money to do that, so the situation doesn’t change," he added.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThe bill will now be introduced in the House of Representatives to get a green light. Forty-eight House Democrats voted for the proposal earlier this month, but the Senate voted on a different version of the Laken Riley Act with an amendment. This meant it the bill needed to be passed in the lower chamber once more.
With inputs from agencies.
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