Lankford Praises Biden's Border Bill, But Trump Has Already Delivered
In a surprising admission, Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) praised a failed immigration bill backed by former President Joe Biden, claiming it would have addressed key border security issues—despite the fact that President Donald Trump has already enacted far more effective reforms using his executive authority.
Lankford, who doesn’t face reelection until 2028, told CBS News that the Biden-supported proposal deserved to pass and included tools that would have cracked down on cartel exploitation of asylum laws.
“They’ve become experts in exploiting our laws because it’s become billions of dollars of income to them when they can find those loopholes and gaps,” Lankford said during an interview at Arizona State University’s McCain Institute.
The bill would have allowed the president to shut down the border if daily illegal crossings exceeded 5,000 for a week and would have limited the controversial humanitarian parole loophole, which has let waves of migrants enter the U.S. with little accountability while waiting years for court hearings.
Despite those points, Lankford's defense of the legislation drew sharp criticism from conservatives, especially after he mocked others who had recently demanded action on the very same loopholes.
“I laughed and I thought, I know somebody that’s brought one of those,” Lankford said smugly, referring to Biden’s bill.
What the senator failed to acknowledge is that the legislation was blocked because President Trump—rightly—urged Republicans to reject it. The reason? It didn’t go nearly far enough, and it came from an administration that had spent years encouraging open borders.
Even Lankford admitted it wasn’t ideal. “Was the bill everything I wanted? No, I was negotiating with a Democrat White House,” he said.
But while Washington haggled over flawed bipartisan deals, President Trump took decisive action. Using current law and executive authority, he effectively shut down illegal crossings at both the northern and southern borders—something Biden never managed despite having the same tools at his disposal.
More importantly, Trump recently signed what he proudly called the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which is now being hailed as the most aggressive immigration and tax reform legislation in modern U.S. history.
ICE is receiving $170 billion in new funding, allowing it to hire 10,000 new deportation officers—each offered a $10,000 signing bonus. The bill streamlines the removal process, closes asylum loopholes, and delivers on Trump’s promise to protect American sovereignty.
In true Trump fashion, the legislation doesn’t stop at the border. It also brings monumental tax relief to working families and small businesses, with $4.5 trillion in tax cuts now on the books, making permanent the reductions enacted during his first term.
President Trump warned lawmakers ahead of the vote that failure to pass the legislation would come with a painful cost: “Republicans, the One Big Beautiful Bill, perhaps the greatest and most important of its kind in history, gives the largest Tax Cuts and Border Security ever, Jobs by the Millions, Military/Vets increases, and so much more. The failure to pass means a whopping 68% Tax increase, the largest in history!!!,” he posted.
According to CBO estimates—often criticized for their inaccuracy—the legislation also trims $1.2 trillion in waste, fraud, and abuse from welfare programs like Medicaid and food stamps. It tightens eligibility, reduces unnecessary payouts, and redirects funding toward law enforcement, veterans, and national defense.
While Lankford may believe Biden’s border bill was a step in the right direction, President Trump has already delivered what America actually needed: secure borders, lower taxes, and restored national pride.