Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., who has already reintroduced the Laken Riley Act with the opening of the new Congress, told Newsmax on Tuesday that he is convinced the legislation will become law.
The bill, which would require ICE to take custody of illegal migrants who commit theft-related crime and was named after the Georgia nursing student who was murdered by an illegal migrant, passed the House last year but not the Senate.
"I am confident it is going to pass, and I think it will pass again with great bipartisan support, because this is good, solid legislation," Collins said on "Wake Up America."
"[The bill is] one more tool that the local law enforcement can put in their toolbox. Because, as you know, right now, local law enforcement can only contact ICE when it is a major crime. And what we have done is tweak the law, so that when things like theft, in the case of [Riley's murderer], who got picked up and cited, he and his brother both, for shoplifting the week before."
Collins said that if the Laken Riley Act "had been in place and been the law of the land before she got murdered, the odds are she would be alive with us today."
Collins said that this time around the Senate is in Republican control and will be more cooperative, saying that his understanding is that the Senate will be held over Thursday night in order to vote on the bill Friday.
He said that this means that this could be one of the first acts passed and ready for President-elect Donald Trump to sign into law on Jan. 20.
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Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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