Demands for a solution to the border crisis have increased as several high-profile cases of crime committed by illegal immigrants have caught national attention. Representative Carlos Gimenez (R-FL) discussed the need to deport these criminals and how Congress will cooperate with Donald Trump if he returns to the White House after the 2024 Election, saying, "We need to pass laws" in a recent appearance on Fox Business Evening Edit.
Rep. Gimenez began by referencing the late January incident in which several migrants with ties to the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua attacked a police officer in New York City yet was released. Additionally, he claimed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) received no assistance from the NYPD in finding and capturing the released migrants due to sanctuary city laws.
However, NYC Mayor Eric Adams' Chief of Staff Camille Varlack denied that sanctuary city laws would prevent the NYPD from cooperating with ICE.
Regardless, host David Asman shifted the conversation to a previous discussion with Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), who said deporting illegal immigrants who commit crimes should be "a no-brainer," asking if Rep. Gimenez would vote for the same measure.
"Absolutely," the Florida Congressman answered, "Yeah, we do not need criminals in the United States, especially ones that came in illegally. We need to protect American citizens, and anybody who is brazen enough to attack a police officer certainly does not belong in the United States."
Gimenez referenced the November murder of former Venezuelan police officer Jose Sanchez Valera by a Tren de Aragua member, adding, "We are seeing an increase in crime because many of the migrants, not saying all, but some of those migrants that are coming in are violent criminals that are here just to start their business in a new country."
Asman asked how, if Donald Trump returns to the White House, he would be able to deport millions of illegal immigrants who have entered the country under the Biden Administration if local authorities will not help assist in the effort.
"We need to pass laws as soon as President Trump becomes President. We need to have the House, [and] we need to have the Senate pass the laws that will work against those sanctuary cities," Gimenez concluded.
