GOP Senator James Lankford on DHS Funding, Immigration, and Government Waste

Government Funding and DHS Stalemate

• 🗓️ A recent funding bill passed, covering most government operations until September 30th, but Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding was only extended for two weeks, creating a February 13th deadline.
• 🏛️ Democratic colleagues are reportedly holding up DHS funding, which includes agencies like FEMA, TSA, Coast Guard, and Secret Service, with the stated aim of defunding ICE.
• 📄 A previously negotiated bill that included funding for body cameras and de-escalation training for federal agents was rejected by Democrats, leading to questions about whether it was an optics issue or a failure to read the negotiated terms.

Immigration Enforcement and "Sanctuary Country" Concerns

• 🚫 Democrats are pushing for an end to administrative warrants, which Senator Lankford argues would effectively turn the U.S. into a sanctuary country by preventing ICE from apprehending individuals, even those with criminal records, unless they have a federal offense.
• 🚨 This proposed change would mean ICE could not detain individuals for state offenses like rape, murder, or multiple DUIs if they are not legally present.
• 🗣️ Lankford believes the Democratic stance is driven by a far-left base that opposes anything associated with the Trump administration, despite the majority of Americans wanting criminal aliens removed from the country.

Fraud in Federal Programs

• 💸 The Justice Department is investigating a $1 million fraud scheme involving SNAP and pandemic unemployment benefits, using stolen identities, including those of children.
• 📉 Minnesota's Department of Human Services is re-evaluating nearly 6,000 Medicaid service providers due to widespread fraud.
• ⚖️ A new law, the Working Families Tax Cut Act, aims to curb SNAP fraud by making states responsible for the cost if they do not properly oversee distribution to eligible, US citizen recipients.

Election Integrity and Government Waste

• 🗳️ Senator Lankford supports the SAVE Act, which would require voter ID to ensure individuals are US citizens and legally present, a measure already in place in his home state of Oklahoma.
• 🚫 Democrats, including Chuck Schumer, have labeled the SAVE Act as "dead on arrival," and concerns exist about ballot harvesting in states with less stringent ballot custody rules.
• 🐖 Lankford's annual "Federal Fumbles" report highlights significant government waste, including millions spent on transgender animal experiments, lab testing on beagles in China, and transitioning mice and monkeys by the NIH, which he argues are not priorities for American taxpayers.