Mike Lawler urges New York Democrats to ‘grow a backbone’ to tackle immigrant surge

Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) called out New York Democrats for their policies as an influx of immigrants come in from the southern border, causing an unprecedented demand for resources and shelter capacity.

Speaking at a House Natural Resources Committee hearing on Wednesday, Lawler criticized New York’s long-held status as a sanctuary city — officials dedicated the status in 2016 to provide services to undocumented immigrants.

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“Having sanctuary city policies has been one of the dumbest things I’ve ever seen for years,” Lawler said.

“Eric Adams and Kathy Hochul don’t have the first clue how to handle this because to handle it would be to acknowledge that these policies have failed, would be to acknowledge that these policies don’t work.”

New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) have sparked intraparty disputes between New York lawmakers and the federal government recently as city leaders struggle to tackle the surge of immigrants by securing shelter spaces and work permits.

“We need immigrants in this country,” Lawler said, noting his family came through Ellis Island, where the stations processed over 12 million immigrants for over three decades starting in 1892.

“They contribute to our economy. They contribute to our communities. They’re good people,” Lawler said, adding the system cannot continue to function as-is and that “there needs to be a process.”

Last week, President Joe Biden granted temporary protected status to hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan immigrants who came from the border without legal documentation. Top New York officials such as Adams and Hochul have been pushing to expedite work authorization for immigrants. Lawler called out Biden for doing “absolutely nothing” while the nation deals with “human trafficking, women and children being raped, assaulted, sold,” and a record amount of fentanyl being seized.

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The Republican freshman congressman targeted senior Democratic leaders such as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) for being “silent” on the problem.

“The time for action is now,” Lawler said. “Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic leader, Chuck Schumer, the Senate majority leader, both from New York, both from Brooklyn: silent. Pathetic. Grow a backbone. Show some leadership. Stand up and say, ‘We’re not going to have a system like this anymore,’” Lawler said, pushing to secure the border and add more border personnel to hear asylum cases faster.