GOP lawmaker dings McCarthy for 'demonizing' illegal immigrants

Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) dinged congressional leadership in both parties on Sunday for their posturing on immigration, including Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) who Gonzales said was “demonizing” illegal immigrants.

“You’ve got McCarthy on one side that is demonizing those that come over illegally,” Gonzales said on CBS’s “Face The Nation.” “You’ve got Chuck Schumer on the other side in the Senate that makes it a morally good thing to help people who are coming over illegally.”

Gonzales’s comments come after the end of the federal Title 42 program, which allowed the government to expel migrants seeking asylum during the pandemic. Gonzales, who represents a large border district in Texas, said the emphasis should be on protecting legal immigration.

“Who gets hurt in this is people that have legal claims,” Gonzales said. “Immigration reform gets further and further behind when we only focus on the illegal part.”

Gonzales said the Biden administration should act to send a “surge” of immigration judges to the southern border, as a pileup of asylum claims have led to years-long wait times on court dates. Gonzales, who visited border facilities over the weekend, said he saw wait times as long as eight years.

“That person should get their case heard in days, not years,” Gonzales said. “This is America. Get your day in court. If you do not qualify for asylum… you get sent back to your country of origin.”

Gonzales also criticized Republican calls for Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to be impeached, saying it was easy for public officials to pass the blame to others.

“You see career politicians blame somebody else, it’s always somebody else’s fault and not them,” Gonzales said. “Right now, the light is shining on Secretary Mayorkas. This is all of our problems.”