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Steve Scalise on Immigration

Republican Representative (LA-1)

 


Seal our borders; it’s a matter of national security

Illegal immigration is not just a social or fiscal issue; it’s a matter of national security. As Louisiana’s Congressman, Steve Scalise will work for solutions that make sense. He will fight to seal our borders with better security and stronger enforcement of existing laws. Steve Scalise will fight to cut off the giveaway programs that illegal aliens enjoy at our expense. There should be no reward for committing a crime.
Source: 2008 Senate campaign website, www.stevescalise.com, “Issues” , May 8, 2008

Amnesty is not an option

Steve believes amnesty is not an option. He will fight to take amnesty off the table. Washington lawmakers need to realize that amnesty is a get-out-of-jail-free card that will only encourage more illegal aliens to cross our borders and drain our nation’s resources. Congress granted amnesty to illegal aliens over 20 years ago, and since then 12 million more illegal aliens have entered the United States. Amnesty failed then and it will fail now.
Source: 2008 Senate campaign website, www.stevescalise.com, “Issues” , May 8, 2008

End Birthright Citizenship; no more anchor babies.

Scalise signed H.R.1868

    Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to consider a person born in the United States "subject to the jurisdiction" of the United States for citizenship at birth purposes if the person is born in the United States of parents, one of whom is:
  1. a U.S. citizen or national;
  2. a lawful permanent resident alien whose residence is in the United States; or
  3. an alien performing active service in the U.S. Armed Forces.
Acknowledge the right of birthright citizenship established by section 1 of the 14th amendment to the Constitution, regarding a person born in the United States.

The amendment made by subsection (a)(3) shall not be construed to affect the citizenship or nationality status of any person born before the date of the enactment of this Act.

[OnTheIssues note: This bill would change the existing interpretation of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which currently defines as a US citizen any person born within US territory. This bill intends to remove the right of illegal aliens to gain US citizenship by bearing children while in the country illegally; the issue is known by bill supporters as "anchor babies"]

Source: Birthright Citizenship Act 09-HR1868 on Apr 2, 2009

Rated B+ by the ALI, indicating an acceptably anti-amnesty stance.

Scalise scores B+ by ALIPAC, Americans for Legal Immigration

ALIPAC supporters have a diverse range of opinions, yet we are united in the belief that more should be done to reduce illegal immigration. ALIPAC supports those that legally immigrate, but we DO NOT support any amnesty, visa expansion, or "Guest Worker" program designed to reward illegal aliens or legalize their presence in the US. We support a peaceful, non racist, rule of law approach to resolving illegal immigration. America is a land of generous and caring people, but our hospitality and values are being strained and abused by those who are willing to break the law and take our jobs and our tax dollars. America's illegal alien population will begin to shrink instead of grow if we support candidates that will reflect the will of the vast majority of American citizens.

    FOUR POINT PLATFORM: "Simply enforce our existing immigration laws!"
  1. Secure Our Borders
  2. Crack down on employers that intentionally hire illegals
  3. Remove incentives and rewards to illegals such as licenses, welfare, and other taxpayer benefits
  4. Enforce our existing laws and deport illegal aliens when convicted of crimes or detected during routine law enforcement activities.
Source: ALI website 10-ALI on Nov 2, 2010

Redefine "birthright citizenship" to exclude illegal aliens.

Scalise co-sponsored Birthright Citizenship Act

Congressional Summary: Acknowledging the right of birthright citizenship established by section 1 of the 14th amendment to the Constitution, amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to consider a person born in the United States "subject to the jurisdiction" of the United States for citizenship at birth purposes if the person is born in the United States of parents, one of whom is:

  1. a U.S. citizen or national;
  2. a lawful permanent resident alien whose residence is in the United States; or
  3. an alien performing active service in the U.S. Armed Forces.

Constitutional Authority Statement: Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuant to the following: Section 5 of the Amendment XIV to the Constitution and Section 8 of Article I of the Constitution.

OnTheIssues Explanation:The relevant part of this law is what is NOT in the list above: illegal aliens or undocumented workers. Those groups are this bill's target: it addresses the issue of "anchor babies," wherein non-citizen mothers cross the US border and give birth in the US and thereby establish citizenship for their newborn. If passed, this bill will likely face a Supreme Court challenge on its constitutionality, since the 14th Amendment defines citizens as "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States." That clause was written after the Civil War to establish citizenship for former slaves; this bill reinterprets that clause to mean that not everyone born in the US automatically becomes a citizen. The cited authorization of the 14th Amendment is "Section 5. The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article."

Source: H.R.140 11-HR140 on Jan 5, 2011

Voted YES to ban DREAMer immigrants from military service.

Scalise voted YEA Gosar Anti-DACA Amendment to H.R. 5293

Congressional Summary: The House voted on an amendment by Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) to H.R. 5293, the Department of Defense Appropriations Act of 2017. The amendment would prohibit funds from being used to extend the expiration of, or reissue a new expiration date to, the Military Accessions Vital to National Interest (MAVNI) program.

Recommendation by Heritage Foundation to vote YES:(6/16/2016): The MAVNI program is a pilot program authorizing "military services to recruit certain legal immigrants whose skills are considered to be vital to the national interest." However, a DoD memo has made it clear that DACA/DAPA recipients are eligible under this program, essentially opening up a pathway to amnesty for illegal aliens who enlist. By ensuring that this guidance ends, DOD will no longer be able to enlist illegal immigrants through MAVNI.

Recommendation by the ACLU to vote NO: (6/28/2011): The DREAM Act promotes fundamental fairness for young people by allowing access to affordable post-secondary education and military service opportunities, regardless of immigration status, and would provide a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children, have lived here for at least five years and have graduated from high school. The DREAM Act could result in billions of dollars in additional tax revenue from tapping the potential of DREAM-eligible students and future service personnel. Since September 11, 2001, more than 69,000 immigrants have earned citizenship while serving, and more than 125 who entered military service after that date have made the ultimate sacrifice in war by giving their lives for this nation.

Legislative outcome: Failed House 210 to 211 (no Senate vote)

Source: Congressional vote 16-H5293 on Jun 16, 2016

Allow immigration bans from non-cooperating countries.

Scalise voted NAY NO BAN Act

The National Origin-Based Antidiscrimination for Nonimmigrants Act (NO BAN Act) imposes limitations on the President's authority to suspend or restrict aliens from entering the US. It also prohibits religious discrimination in various immigration-related decisions, such as issuing a visa. The President may temporarily restrict the entry of any class of aliens after determining that the restriction would address specific and credible facts that threaten U.S. interests such as security or public safety.

GovTrack.us analysis (4/21/21): President Donald Trump instituted a travel ban on eight countries: Chad, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Syria, Venezuela, and Yemen. The Supreme Court upheld the travel ban 5-4 in the 2018 decision Trump v. Hawaii. Trump's travel ban was popularly nicknamed "the Muslim ban" by its Democratic critics since most of the countries it applied to were majority Muslim, and because Trump as a 2016 candidate had indeed proposed a Muslim ban. Regardless, President Joe Biden rescinded the policy on his first day in office. Currently, federal law bans any person from being discriminated against when entering the U.S. on the basis of five characteristics: race, sex, nationality, place of birth, or place of residence. The NO BAN Act would add another category: religion.

Rep. Tom McClintock in OPPOSITION: President Trump invoked this authority against countries that were hotbeds of international terrorism and that were not cooperating with the US in providing basic information about travelers coming from these countries. The left called it a 'Muslim ban.' What nonsense. Without this authority, the president would have been powerless to take simple, prudent precautions against terrorists and criminals from entering the US.

Legislative Outcome: Passed House 218-208-3 on April 21, 2021, rollcall #127; introduced in Senate with 42 co-sponsors but no further Senate action during 2021.

Source: Congressional vote 21-HR1333 on Feb 25, 2021

2021-22 Governor, House and Senate candidates on Immigration: Steve Scalise on other issues:
LA Gubernatorial:
Cedric Richmond
Charles Boustany
Eddie Rispone
John Bel Edwards
John Neely Kennedy
Ralph Abraham
LA Senatorial:
Adrian Perkins
Antoine Pierce
Bill Cassidy
Charles Boustany
Foster Campbell
John Fleming
John Neely Kennedy
Joseph Cao
Rob Maness
Thomas Clements
Republican Freshman class of 2021:
AL-1: Jerry Carl(R)
AL-2: Barry Moore(R)
CA-8: Jay Obernolte(R)
CA-50: Darrell Issa(R)
CO-3: Lauren Boebert(R)
FL-3: Kat Cammack(R)
FL-15: Scott Franklin(R)
FL-19: Byron Donalds(R)
GA-9: Andrew Clyde(R)
GA-14: Marjorie Taylor Greene(R)
IA-2: Mariannette Miller-Meeks(R)
IA-4: Randy Feenstra(R)
IL-15: Mary Miller(R)
IN-5: Victoria Spartz(R)
KS-1: Tracey Mann(R)
KS-2: Jake LaTurner(R)
LA-5: Luke Letlow(R)
MI-3: Peter Meijer(R)
MI-10: Lisa McClain(R)
MT-0: Matt Rosendale(R)
NC-11: Madison Cawthorn(R)
NM-3: Teresa Leger Fernandez(D)
NY-2: Andrew Garbarino(R)
NY-22: Claudia Tenney(R)
OR-2: Cliff Bentz(R)
PR-0: Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon(R)
TN-1: Diana Harshbarger(R)
TX-4: Pat Fallon(R)
TX-11: August Pfluger(R)
TX-13: Ronny Jackson(R)
TX-17: Pete Sessions(R)
TX-22: Troy Nehls(R)
TX-23: Tony Gonzales(R)
TX-24: Beth Van Duyne(R)
UT-1: Blake Moore(R)
VA-5: Bob Good(R)
WI-5: Scott Fitzgerald(R)
Incoming Democratic Freshman class of 2021:
CA-53: Sara Jacobs(D)
GA-5: Nikema Williams(D)
GA-7: Carolyn Bourdeaux(D)
HI-2: Kai Kahele(D)
IL-3: Marie Newman(D)
IN-1: Frank Mrvan(D)
MA-4: Jake Auchincloss(D)
MO-1: Cori Bush(D)
NC-2: Deborah Ross(D)
NC-6: Kathy Manning(D)
NY-15: Ritchie Torres(D)
NY-16: Jamaal Bowman(D)
NY-17: Mondaire Jones(D)
WA-10: Marilyn Strickland(D)

Republican takeovers as of 2021:
CA-21: David Valadao(R) defeated T.J. Cox(D)
CA-39: Young Kim(R) defeated Gil Cisneros(D)
CA-48: Michelle Steel(R) defeated Harley Rouda(D)
FL-26: Carlos Gimenez(R) defeated Debbie Mucarsel-Powell(D)
FL-27: Maria Elvira Salazar(R) defeated Donna Shalala(D)
IA-1: Ashley Hinson(R) defeated Abby Finkenauer(D)
MN-7: Michelle Fischbach(R) defeated Collin Peterson(D)
NM-2: Yvette Herrell(R) defeated Xochitl Small(D)
NY-11: Nicole Malliotakis(R) defeated Max Rose(D)
OK-5: Stephanie Bice(R) defeated Kendra Horn(D)
SC-1: Nancy Mace(R) defeated Joe Cunningham(D)
UT-4: Burgess Owens(R) defeated Ben McAdams(D)

Special Elections 2021-2022:
CA-22: replacing Devin Nunes (R, SPEL summer 2022)
FL-20: replacing Alcee Hastings (D, SPEL Jan. 2022)
LA-2: Troy Carter (R, April 2021)
LA-5: Julia Letlow (R, March 2021)
NM-1: Melanie Stansbury (D, June 2021)
OH-11: Shontel Brown (D, Nov. 2021)
OH-15: Mike Carey (R, Nov. 2021)
TX-6: Jake Ellzey (R, July 2021)
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Page last updated: Feb 15, 2022