At CNN's City Hall on Thursday, Rep. Jahana Hayes (D-CT) responded to criticism of the numerous immigrants who entered the United States under the Biden administration, saying that “the immigrants who entered this country entered the country through the law as written.”
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) said that “more than 10.5 million immigrants” came to the United States under the Biden administration and released under catch and liberation, and “the border intersections have declined from 189,000 in February 2024 to over 8,000, more than 8,000 in February 2025.”
Hayes said, “When we're talking about immigrants who have entered this country, they came through the law as it was written, so I need to weigh them. So we need comprehensive immigration reforms that support the farmers, our families, our dreamers. So, this is all punitive.
She added, “People who commit crimes and do not belong here should be deported, but that's not what we're talking about.”
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