Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, said on Newsmax Tuesday that ongoing Democrat efforts to eliminate funding for the Department of Homeland Security may increase vulnerabilities in the United States to foreign threats.
He also criticized certain reactions within the country regarding the death of Iran's ayatollah.
In the interview on "Finnerty," Gill framed the DHS funding dispute as a security issue. He said, "You never want your Department of Homeland Security to be defunded, but certainly not whenever we're in a conflict with Iran."
He added that there are "realistic and very real concerns about sleeper cells of foreign agents right here in the United States."
Asked about Democrat efforts related to DHS funding amid those concerns, Gill said, "The reality is that Democrats would rather play politics ... they prefer open borders over keeping our nation secure.
"That's why DHS isn't funded right now."
He pointed to the problem of "four years of open borders," saying "millions of people from all over the globe came into our country, settled down in our communities," adding that some "could be associated with hostile foreign governments, hostile regimes."
Gill said the stakes were immediate, calling it "a serious national security threat."
"We've got to get this done because this is a real issue for the security and the safety of the American people," he said.
Battle lines on DHS funding have hardened around immigration enforcement and oversight.
Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee say Senate Democrats are demanding limits on interior enforcement, warning that brinkmanship could shut down DHS and disrupt security missions.
According to Reuters, Democrats say they will not support full-year DHS funding without changes to tighten controls and oversight of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection, including reforms they argue are needed after recent enforcement-related controversies.
While in the House, Appropriations Committee Democrats have pushed funding that backs what they call "law-abiding" DHS agencies, such as FEMA, TSA, and CISA, while excluding ICE, CBP, and the office of the secretary, arguing that Republicans are blocking that approach.
In another part of the exchange, the interviewer raised deportation and neighborhood safety tied to people in the U.S. who mourn the death of Iran's Ayatollah as a hero.
Gill replied, "You're 100% correct." He said, "mass migration is absolutely suicidal," adding, that "mass migration is absolutely suicidal, particularly whenever it's coming from parts of the world that view America and our role in the world completely opposite to the way we do.
"The reality is that mass migration, particularly from the Islamic world, is idiotic and suicidal, and we're seeing the consequences of that right now."
He described the ayatollah as "one of the most violent and ruthless dictators in the world."
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Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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