Immigration hawks reacted with delight after former President Trump announced the selection of Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, as his running mate, pointing to his record of staunch opposition to illegal immigration and his votes in favor of additional border security.
“President Trump was first elected to secure our border and enforce our immigration laws after decades of neglect in Washington — and he delivered on his promises,” RJ Hauman, president of the National Immigration Center for Enforcement, told Fox News Digital. “By choosing a fierce immigration reformer like Senator Vance as his running mate, President Trump has reaffirmed to the American people that our borders must be secured and immigration laws aggressively enforced.”
“The largest deportation effort in American history now has one hell of a co-pilot,” he said.
TRUMP ANNOUNCES OHIO SEN. JD VANCE AS HIS 2024 RUNNING MATE
Unaccompanied minors walk toward U.S. Border Patrol vehicles after crossing over from Mexico on May 9, 2023 in El Paso, Texas. (John Moore/Getty Images)
Trump announced the Vance pick earlier Monday, saying he has fought “so brilliantly” for workers and farmers in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio and Minnesota. On Tuesday, the theme for the convention will be “Make America Safe Once Again,” when border security and illegal immigrant crime are likely to be hot topics, given the ongoing crisis at the southern border and the massive impact it is having on the presidential race.
The Ohio senator has top ratings for his votes and positions on immigration from hawkish groups that call for lower levels of immigration. Heritage Action has given him a 93% rating on the issue.
“With a 93% on the Heritage Action scorecard, Senator JD Vance has proven to be a committed conservative fighter in the Senate. He wants to secure the border, enforce the rule of law, and protect American workers,” Ryan Walker, Executive Vice President at Heritage Action, said. “With his proven record, impressive resume, and unique background, Senator Vance will help President Trump return to the White House and secure our borders once and for all.”
As senator, Vance currently has an “A” grade from NumbersUSA. The group pointed to his co-sponsorship of the Senate version of the House GOP border bill known as H.R. 2, as well as his votes against the recent bipartisan Senate package backed by the Biden administration.
Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) arrives at the first day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum on July 15, 2024 in Milwaukee. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
It has also noted his votes for bills to mandate the employment authorization system E-Verify, criminalize visa overstays, limit the use of humanitarian parole, and his efforts to increase the credible fear standard for asylum seekers. Other immigration hawks pointed to bills he has supported to reshape Alternatives to Detention and that would require all illegal immigrants on the non-detained docket to be put on GPS tracking.
“Senator Vance has distinguished himself in his ability to clearly articulate the dysfunction inherent in our legal immigration system, especially the harm caused to American workers through lowered wages and lost jobs, as well as understanding how the high level of immigration leads to higher housing costs,” Numbers USA CEO James Massa said. “Senator Vance understands that immigration policy must no longer be determined by special interests in Washington, D.C., or big business seeking cheap labor at the expense of American workers, but instead designed in the interest of the American people at large.”
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U.S. Tech Workers, a group which opposes the H-1B visa program, which critics have said is used by tech companies to replace American workers with cheap foreign labor, noted Vance’s prior criticism of the H-1B program.
“Here’s hoping this unity ticket finally sees H-1B visa reform come to fruition,” the account said.
Mark Krikorian, executive director at the Center for Immigration Studies, said that Vance “has the chance to help the GOP move beyond mere rhetoric and make it a genuinely pro-worker party.”
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Speaking to Fox News’ Sean Hannity on Monday evening, Vance highlighted Trump’s promise to launch a mass deportation operation if elected in November.
“We have to deport people, we have to deport people who broke our laws who came in here and I think we start with the violent criminals. President Trump has been very, very effective at communicating on this to the point where now a majority of Americans believe that we need to deport a large number of people who have come here illegally,” he said.