A bipartisan agreement to beef up security along the southern border to combat the illegal immigration crisis has a conservative ally despite staunch opposition from Donald Trump and House Republicans: Sen. Lindsey Graham.
The South Carolina Republican advocated for the deal, which was expected to be officially released later Sunday, as a “real change” to current U.S. immigration laws that would stem the record influx of illegal border crossings.
“I hope people keep an open mind,” Mr. Graham said on “Fox News Sunday.” “If you believe, as President Trump does, our laws are broken, then you got to fix them.”
Mr. Trump, the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, and House Republicans say the deal doesn’t go far enough to combat the crisis and say it would be political malpractice to give President Biden a win on a policy issue he created.
Mr. Graham urged his Republican colleagues — including House Speaker Mike Johnson, who has described the deal as being dead on arrival in his chamber — to not let perfect be the enemy of good by holding out hopes for a stricter House-passed border package known as HR 2.
“Bringing a bill that fails doesn’t solve a problem,” he said. “You sit down with the other side and negotiate.”
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