Rep. Addison McDowell, R-N.C., on Newsmax Wednesday fired back at Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., who has called to abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement, arguing the agency is essential to ensuring the integrity of U.S. voter rolls and elections.
During an appearance on "Wake Up America," McDowell framed Ramirez's message as an attack on border enforcement even as the U.S. grapples with what he described as a Biden-era surge in illegal immigration.
"I would have to ask her what changed from when [former] President [Barack] Obama gave [border czar] Tom Homan a medal for his work with illegal immigrants," he said.
"This is no different. We are doing what we said we were going to do."
McDowell said the GOP is "trying to stop these criminals from invading our country," which he said they did under former President Joe Biden.
"Now, what President [Donald] Trump did on day one is he secured our southern border, and what we're trying to do is get rid of the 20 million people that the Biden administration let into our country with no regard for its safety," added McDowell.
He also brushed off Democrat rhetoric that equates immigration enforcement with extremism, saying the labels are familiar.
"Calling us fascists is nothing new," McDowell said. "But the Democrats need to take a long look in the mirror at why do they want to continue to allow this to happen."
"Why do they want illegals in our country?"
McDowell then tied immigration enforcement to election security, spotlighting the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act.
"I think that this is a commonsense measure," McDowell said.
"I'm a co-sponsor of the SAVE Act. We have to get it done."
He argued American elections are "the marvel of the modern world" and "the thing that makes our country great" but warned that the U.S. "can't have that if people are cheating and they're stealing."
McDowell aimed his criticism at House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., saying he "cannot imagine" why the Democrat leader "doesn't want voter ID" and "doesn't want to kick illegals off of our voter rolls."
"There's only one explanation for that," he said, adding that "every Democrat that is running for Congress or that is in Congress needs to answer that question."
"The president is exactly right — because you want to cheat," McDowell said of Democrats.
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Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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