The Republican Laken Riley Act is headed to President Donald Trump's desk, becoming the first bill he signs into law since the party retakes both houses of Congress and the White House.
The House of Representatives passed the bill on Wednesday by a vote of 263 to 156, marking the second time this month that the bill has advanced in the lower chamber.
The bill passed the House of Representatives on January 7, 264-159. All Republicans who voted supported the bill, along with 48 Democrats -- two more than in recent votes.
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Trump is expected to sign the Laken Riley Act into law as the first piece of legislation of his new term. (Reuters/Carlos Barria)
The Republican-controlled Senate also advanced the bill in a bipartisan vote of 64-35, but added measures to deport illegal immigrants who attack police or cause death or "serious bodily harm" to others.
The original bill would have directed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials to detain illegal immigrants accused of theft-related crimes. It also allows states to sue the Department of Homeland Security alleging their citizens have been harmed by illegal immigration.
Most Democrats opposed the bill, arguing that allowing people who have been charged but not convicted of a crime to be deported is a slippery slope. But supporters of the bill point out that illegal immigrants already violate U.S. law.
Jose Ibarra (left) was found guilty of 10 counts in the death of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley (right). (Hyosub Shin/The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, AP, Pool)
It's worth noting, however, that more Democrats supported the bill when it passed the House this month than when it first comes to a vote in 2024. That's a marked difference from last year, when the Democratic-controlled Senate didn't even move the bill to a vote.
Asked about the growing left-wing support, the bill's leader, Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., told Fox News Digital: "Nothing is going to happen in this town unless the American people demand it. matter."
"They've been shouting loudly for a solution to the border issue."
Rep. Randy Feenstra, R-Iowa, who spearheaded Sarah's Law and one of the amendments that passed the bill, told Fox News Digital: "About a decade ago , 21-year-old Sarah Root was killed and her life ended tragically “by an illegal immigrant who drove under the influence… Sarah’s Law not only provides justice for the Root family, but also ensures that any illegal immigrant who harms or kills an American citizen. All are promptly detained and prosecuted. "
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Georgia Republican Rep. Mike Collins led the bill in the House. (Bill Clark)
Republican lawmakers are working to make good on Trump's promises to crack down on illegal immigration and border security as the president issues a series of executive orders on the issues. They positioned the Laken Riley Act as the first bill to receive Trump's signature, reflecting their efforts to make his agenda permanent.
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The bill is named for a nursing student who was killed by an illegal immigrant while jogging on the University of Georgia campus.
Jose Ibarra, who is serving a life sentence for the murder of Laken Riley, had been arrested before but never taken into ICE custody.