Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., was mocked on social media Wednesday for telling Republicans to pass a bill to remove the Statue of Liberty along with their “bigoted” immigration law.
A House Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing on immigration discussed H.R.2, the House GOP’s Secure the Border Act, the comprehensive border security and immigration bill passed back in May. The bill would restrict the asylum process for people crossing the border and require resumed construction on the border wall.
The freshman congressman was one of many Democrats who attacked the bill, though he also produced a mock bill to remove the Statue of Liberty for Republicans to also pass.
Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., attacked Republicans’ immigration bill. (House Oversight and Accountability Committee )
“My colleagues from the other side of the aisle, let’s be honest with immigrants who deserve better than what you’re offering them. Don’t welcome immigrants if you plan to reject them. If you keep pushing your bigoted H.R. 2 bill, then also pass this bill. I’ve taken the liberty of drafting it for you,” Frost said, holding up the draft. “It removes the Statue of Liberty, our largest symbol that tells people to come here.”
“This is who you are, removing the fabric of America. So, I want to know which Republican, who supports and voted for H.R.2, will introduce this bill,” he continued. “If you’re gonna support H.R.2 and these bigoted measures, the least you can do is not be a d–n liar.”
Frost’s reference to the iconic sculpture was blasted for conflating significant immigration reform with text on the Statue of Liberty.
“This is ridiculous,” The Telegraph contributor Nile Gardiner remarked.
Fox News contributor Guy Benson agreed, “god this is stupid.”
“Hey! Statue!” The Spectator contributing editor Stephen Miller joked, pointing out the leftist trope.
“Democrats can’t decide if they want to topple statues or have them make our laws for us,” writer Ryan James Girdusky posted.
RealClearInvestigations senior writer Mark Hemingway added, “There’s only one party in this country that wants to tear down statues, and it’s not Republicans.”
Substack writer Jim Treacher noted, “Eric Adams isn’t a Republican. Brandon Johnson isn’t a Republican. None of the other mayors crying about immigrants are Republicans.”
“The country’s going to hell because people keep electing morons like this,” Twitchy’s Doug Powers declared.
Maryland State Senator Justin Ready commented, “Then I guess New York and Chicago should stop complaining then!”
“You can be for legal immigration and a secure border, its not something we have to choose between,” Republican State Leadership Committee deputy communications director Mason Di Palma wrote.
Radio host Lori Mills explained, “He should sponsor a family, and illegal aliens should be sent to his district. It’s the compassionate thing to do. @GovAbbott.”
The Statue of Liberty has been invoked to attack efforts to restrict illegal immigration. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
The left referring to the Statue of Liberty as equivalent to immigration law has been an often-ridiculed notion by right-wingers. During the Trump administration, cabinet members were asked how the president’s immigration stances squared with the symbolic sculpture.
“The Statue of Liberty says, ‘give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.’ It doesn’t say anything about speaking English or being able to be a computer programmer,” CNN’s Jim Acosta infamously said to then senior White House adviser Stephen Miller in 2017.
Frost drafted a fake bill to remove the Statue of Liberty in response to the GOP’s immigration stance. (Photo by Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Congressional Integrity Project/Photo by Islam Dogru/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Although Frost attacked Republicans, 14 Democratic lawmakers voted with the GOP to condemn President Biden’s border policies. The Democrats included Reps. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas; Jared Golden, D-Maine; Mary Peltola, D-Alaska; Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Wash.; and Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla.
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Fox News’ Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.
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