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Vote Explainer: Agent Raul Gonzalez Officer Safety Act (H.R. 5585)

January 31, 2024

Transparency is vital to democracy. Below please find explainers for key votes I took in the 118th Congress.

H.R. 5585 – Agent Raul Gonzalez Officer Safety Act

On January 30th, the House voted on the Agent Raul Gonzalez Officer Safety Act. Among its other provisions, the bill would make fleeing from border agents or other law enforcement officers within 100 miles of the border in a motor vehicle an offense for which an immigrant can either be deported from the U.S. or denied admissibility into the U.S. 

First: fleeing from law enforcement is already grounds for deportation under existing law. 

I voted against the bill because I believe that our American system of justice should provide people with strong due process protections. This bill would water down the requirement to actually convict somebody before they are eligible for deportation for committing a crime. 

Someone could be deported if they merely  “admitted” to committing the offense or its essential elements. This weaker threshold would apply to immigrants who have legally been in the U.S. for decades, who may have families, and who entered this country “the right way.” Notably, the stricter requirement to secure a conviction before being able to deport somebody would still apply to far more serious crimes like murder and rape.

I do not believe that America will be stronger if we water down legal protections simply for the sake of showing our understandable frustration with our dysfunctional immigration system. Our immigration laws badly need sensible reform. I remain committed to working with Republicans to promote common-sense ideas that the vast majority of Americans can agree on.