N.J. Lawmakers Join Attack On Funding For Trump Immigration Ban

As waves of protest roll across the nation in the wake of President Trump’s controversial executive order halting immigration from several countries with large Muslim populations, a large collection of federal lawmakers - including six from New Jersey - are trying to cut the legs out from under the order by attacking its funding.

H.R. 724 – otherwise known as the SOLVE Act of 2017 – would “prohibit the use of federal funds” to enforce Trump’s executive order "Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States.”

The SOLVE Act – which is also referred to as “Statue of Liberty Values Act” – would also void Trump’s order and prohibit its implementation and administration.

Read the full text of the bill here.

A collection of 177 U.S. representatives have signed onto the effort from primary sponsor Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), which was introduced and referred to the U.S. House Intelligence Committee on Monday.

The full list of co-sponsors includes:

• 35 California representatives
• 18 New York representatives
• 11 Illinois representatives
• 9 Florida representatives
• 9 Massachusetts representatives
• 7 Maryland representatives
• 7 Texas representatives
• 6 New Jersey representatives
• 6 Washington representatives
• 5 Connecticut representatives
• 5 Michigan representatives
• 5 Pennsylvania

One of the bill’s original co-sponsors, Rep. Albio Sires (D-NJ) - who fled Communist Cuba with his family in 1962 with the help of American relatives - called Trump’s order “incompatible with America’s foundations and core values.”

New Jersey's 8th district, which Sires represents, includes Port Newark-Elizabeth, Newark Airport, and municipalities in Hudson, Essex, Union and Bergen counties.

The other five U.S. representatives from New Jersey who have signed as co-sponsors to the bill include:

• Rep. Donald Norcross [D-NJ-1]
• Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. [D-NJ-6]
• Rep. Donald Payne Jr. [D-NJ-10]
• Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman [D-NJ-12]
• Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr. [D-NJ-9]

Trump’s executive order bans immigrants from several countries - Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen - from entering the United States for 90 days. The order, which also halted the U.S. refugee program for 120-days, is aimed at stopping “radical Islamic terrorists,” Trump has said.

• See related article: 7 Facts About President Trump's Immigration Ban — And The Chaos That Ensued
• See related article: U.S. Judges Halt Trump's Deportations Of Dozens Held At Airports

Photo: Flickr Commons, Tim Pierce

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