Iowa Governor Signs Bill Allowing Arrest, Deportation Of Illegal Aliens

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) has signed a bill into law allowing state law enforcement to arrest and deport illegal aliens.

The legislation, which passed in March in the state’s Republican-controlled legislature with some Democrat support, will go into effect on July 1. The measure criminalizes “illegal reentry” in Iowa, meaning that illegal aliens who were previously deported or denied entry into the United States would face up to two years in prison and deportation, according to Iowa Public Radio.

The law allows an illegal alien to be found guilty of a Class C felony with a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison if they are discovered to have illegally entered the U.S. and have committed another felony. If an individual is convicted of illegally entering the U.S., Iowa judges would be required to submit an order for them to be returned to their home country.

Reynolds condemned President Joe Biden’s refusal to enforce immigration laws and failure to address the border crisis in a press release about the new law.

“The Biden Administration has failed to enforce our nation’s immigration laws, putting the protection and safety of Iowans at risk,” she explained. “Those who come into our country illegally have broken the law, yet Biden refuses to deport them. This bill gives Iowa law enforcement the power to do what he is unwilling to do: enforce immigration laws already on the books.”

Iowa’s new law is similar to the immigration measure signed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) that is currently being challenged in the courts by the Biden administration. This law, which has been blocked by a federal appeals court and is waiting to be debated by the Supreme Court, allows Texas law enforcement to arrest and deport illegal aliens.

The Biden administration claims that any state law pertaining to illegal immigration violates the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which gives the federal government jurisdiction over immigration issues. However, opponents of the administration argue that, if the clause gives the federal government the ultimate right over immigration, it also places the responsibility of enforcing immigration laws on the Biden administration. If the administration refuses to enforce these laws and protect the states from an invasion of illegal aliens, then they are derelict in their duty and the states have no choice but to take the responsibility for themselves.

Radical open borders activists in Iowa expressed criticism of the new law, echoing the Biden administration’s arguments.

“This law ignores the fact of federal preemption, and it’s purely a political stunt in an election year that’s meant to drive fear and just perpetuate hateful campaign rhetoric,” claimed Erica Johnson, executive director of the Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice, according to Iowa Public Radio.

Mark Stringer, the executive director of the Iowa branch of the ACLU claimed that the new law is “one of the most extreme, discriminatory, and unconstitutional anti-immigrant bills in the country.”