Press Releases
The MAGA Majority’s Shifting Goalposts Increase Default Risk
WASHINGTON, DC — Last Friday, Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX-21) gave a full-throated endorsement of the MAGA Majority’s pursuit of extreme anti-immigration policies at the U.S.-Mexico border, signaling that new restrictions against asylum seekers could be the next bargaining chip Republicans use to hold the U.S. economy hostage in the ongoing default crisis. Rep. Roy joined a growing coalition of Republicans who argue that border security is somehow related to the nation paying its bills. While Rep. Roy and his MAGA colleagues shift the goalposts for a clean debt bill, the shadow of default continues to threaten the finances of millions of seniors, veterans, workers, children, and the food insecure.
Our economy is teetering on a cliff, and each day Republicans are pushing us closer to the edge. We need to pay our debt, but the MAGA Majority keeps increasing their price. Rep. Roy and his Republican colleagues have proposed no reasonable solutions. Instead, they’re pursuing fringe-right policies at the border that cannot be taken seriously. What’s serious is the consequences for Americans—including gaps in Social Security, rapidly increasing mortgage rates, and lost jobs—if MAGA Republicans like Rep. Roy fail to do their duty and pass a clean bill.
Liz Zelnick, Director Of Accountable.Us’ Economic Security & Corporate Power Program.
In an interview, Rep. Roy outlined his full argument, saying:
“We passed the bill that I think does the job. … And by the way, I think this is now a central part of any debt ceiling or spending debate for the remainder of the year…Every day that the President continues to dilly dally, in my mind, the price goes up, not down. … You want a debt ceiling increase? You want to go fund the operations of government? Then fix the damn border, Mr. President.”
He is joined by Rep. Garret Graves (R-LA-6) who pointed to the MAGA Majority’s sweeping border and immigration bill, saying Republicans are “bringing more ideas to the table.”
“The House has now added more to the mix,” Graves said in a separate interview Friday. “With yesterday passing the immigration bill — which doesn’t just secure America, doesn’t just save lives from fentanyl overdose, but also saves tens of billions of dollars in wasted money as a result of this administration’s careless border policy.”
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