House Republicans set to join Trump's border trip
A group of House Republicans is set to join Donald Trump's visit to the U.S.-Mexico border next week.
About a dozen members of the Republican Study Committee, the biggest caucus in the House GOP, plan to join the former president on the trip next Wednesday. The joint travel highlights not only Trump’s enduring influence over the party, but also the former president's ongoing focus on immigration — a topic that he made a centerpiece of his campaigns and administration, to polarizing effect.
A spokesperson for Rep. Jim Banks, chair of the RSC, confirmed the travel plans to POLITICO. The Indiana Republican used the moment to slam President Joe Biden over the recent uptick in migration at the nation's southern border.
"President Trump spent four years fixing the border. But the Biden administration broke it again, and we are now experiencing the worst border crisis in our history," Banks said in a statement. "That’s why the RSC has made carrying on the Trump legacy on immigration our top priority this Congress and why we are heading to the border with President Trump to explain how we can end this national embarrassment."
The border appearance will be the second meeting this month between Trump and members of the RSC, a sign of how the closely the broader GOP conference is hugging the former president. Earlier this month, leaders of the House Republican caucus met with Trump at his Bedminster resort in New Jersey, and RSC members have invited Trump to meet with them in Washington.
Republicans see a winning message with their base as they go after Biden's administration for its handling of rising migrant crossings. Already this year, multiple House GOP groups have trekked to the U.S.-Mexico border to call attention to the issue.
The RSC has played a key role in shaping GOP messaging on immigration, including the development of a framework shared with leadership that Banks described as “guardrails for any future immigration deal.”
Also joining Trump at the border next week will be Texas' GOP governor, Greg Abbott, who recently announced that the state would construct its own border wall as he embraces a hard-line approach to immigration.
