Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has called out Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas for welcoming illegal immigrants to work in the city under Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas’ illegal immigrant parole program. Bailey shared a letter exclusively with Fox News Digital, expressing his concern about the consequences of open border policies. He highlighted a case where an illegal alien from Venezuela, who had been granted a work permit under Mayorkas’ policy, brutally murdered a college student named Laken Hope Riley. Despite this, Lucas continued to openly welcome all seeking refuge in Kansas City without acknowledging the dangers posed by illegal immigrants flooding the borders.
Bailey criticized Lucas for encouraging illegal immigrants to come to Missouri, ignoring the fact that some individuals with alleged work permits have committed violent crimes. He pointed out that Missouri law prohibits state businesses from hiring or employing illegal immigrants, making it a felony to knowingly transport illegal immigrants within the state. Bailey stated his intention to take legal action against any person or entity found in violation of these statutes. He also announced that Missouri would be joining 19 other state attorney generals in suing Secretary Mayorkas over his “disastrous” and illegal parole program that creates a pathway to citizenship for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants annually.
In his letter to Lucas, Bailey warned against the dangers and expenses associated with welcoming illegal immigrants into Missouri. He criticized Mayorkas’ parole program, which allows up to 360,000 illegal immigrants from countries such as Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to enter the United States each year. Bailey emphasized the legal implications for Missouri businesses who may participate in this unlawful program and expressed his commitment to protecting Missouri taxpayers, residents, and business owners from the negative impacts of illegal immigration. This letter comes on the heels of Sen. Josh Hawley’s fiery testimony to the Senate regarding the impeachment trial against Mayorkas for releasing an illegal immigrant accused of murdering a nursing student.
The controversy surrounding Mayorkas’ parole program was further fueled by the case of Jose Ibarra, an illegal immigrant from Venezuela, who was charged with the murder of Laken Riley while she was jogging at the University of Georgia. Despite having a criminal record and a prior accusation of a crime against a child in New York, Ibarra was given a work permit under the parole program. Hawley and other Republican lawmakers grilled Mayorkas over the agency’s handling of Ibarra’s case, accusing him of releasing the illegal immigrant unlawfully into the United States. The parole program initially targeted Venezuelans, but was later expanded to include Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Cubans, allowing up to 30,000 migrants a month to enter the U.S. with work permits and authorization to live in the country for two years.
In conclusion, Bailey’s letter to Lucas highlights the ongoing debate surrounding illegal immigration and the consequences of welcoming illegal immigrants into the United States. The case of Laken Riley’s murder and the controversy surrounding Jose Ibarra’s work permit shed light on the failures of current immigration policies and raise concerns about public safety and legal compliance. As Missouri and other states take legal action against Mayorkas’ parole program, the debate over border security, immigration reform, and the administration’s handling of illegal immigration continues to be a divisive issue in American politics.
