House Democrats and Republicans on Monday approved a mass immigration pipeline that will provide expedited entry into the United States for Hong Kong residents.
Through a procedure known as “unanimous consent,” House Democrats passed H.R. 8428 — known as the Hong Kong People’s Freedom and Choice Act of 2020 — which invites millions of Hong Kong residents to the U.S..
Unanimous consent rules allow lawmakers to pass legislation without a voice vote so long as no lawmaker objects. In this case, no House Republicans objected to the legislation.
The legislation, authored by Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-NJ) and co-sponsored by six Republicans and 23 Democrats, gives Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Hong Kong residents, their spouses, and their children up to the age of 27-years-old.
Estimates by the Center for Immigration Studies have put the total number of Hong Kong residents “who might be eligible for benefits” under the legislation at 8.15 million. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) praised the passage of the legislation:
The new Hong Kong National Security law has caused severe damage to the “one country, two systems” principle. The House-passed Hong Kong People’s Freedom & Choice Act of 2020 provides necessary protection to residents of Hong Kong facing & fleeing political persecution.
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) December 7, 2020
RJ Hauman with the Federation for American Immigration Reform said TPS is anything but temporary.
“Let’s be real, there is nothing temporary about what China has done in Hong Kong, nor is there anything temporary about the TPS program,” Hauman said. “In the next decade, will the Chinese Communist Party change its mind and quit criminalizing dissent and create a democracy there? Will this bill suddenly encourage them to do so? No.”
“This is a shady effort to grant permanent residence to many Hong Kong residents in the U.S. under the guise of protecting democracy,” Hauman continued. “Instead, lawmakers should reform the TPS program as a whole, and most importantly, focus on immigration proposals that protect and enhance the interests of the American people.”
TPS is a quasi-amnesty for otherwise illegal aliens created under the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1990 (INA) that prevents the deportation of foreign nationals from countries that have suffered through famine, war, or natural disasters. Though it was originally intended to be temporary, TPS for a wide array of foreign nationals has been in place for decades.
Chinese Americans overwhelmingly back Democrats in state and national elections. In 2016, for instance, data suggests that Trump received just 24 percent from Chinese Americans.
H.R. 8428 now heads to the U.S. Senate.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter at @JxhnBinder.
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