New Leadership for House Homeland Security Committee

On Monday night, the House Republican Executive Committee made a significant decision by electing New York State Rep. Andrew Garbarino as chair of the Homeland Security Committee. Garbarino previously chaired the House Homeland Security Committee and has played a key role in shaping the House Republican agenda on border security and immigration.

This election was prompted by the resignation of Tennessee Rep. Mark Green, a member of the Conservative Freedom Caucus, who stepped down in early July. Garbarino, a moderate, was chosen over candidates including Michael Guest from Mississippi, Carlos Guimenez from Florida, and Clay Higgins from Louisiana.

During the election, Garbarino was serving as the chair of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection Subcommittee. His background in cybersecurity was deemed beneficial for the committee’s new direction.

Earlier this year, Garbarino and his fellow New York Republicans secured an immigration victory that bolstered law enforcement through management and enforcement measures, specifically through the Police Act included in the Laken Riley Act. This law was first introduced by Garbarino in 2021 and reintroduced after the 119th Congress resumed in January.

Leading up to his new role, Garbarino publicly voiced support for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and criticized Democratic efforts to restrict immigration enforcement agents from mask-wearing during their duties.

Garbarino commented, “It’s incredible to hear the other side complain about masks, even when ICE is dealing with serious threats from gangs like MS-13 in my district.” His remarks reflected a defensive stance on immigration enforcement and law enforcement support.

Notably, Garbarino’s predecessor in this committee role had a long tenure, serving as chair from 2005 to 2007 and again from 2011 to 2013.

The selection of a new chair comes as Republicans contemplate drafting a revised version of HR 2, known as the Secure the Border Act, especially after the August resignation of Guest. According to reports, there’s a belief among lawmakers that an effort to advance HR 2 could occur before the year’s end.

Republicans seem focused on revising certain laws to ensure that if there’s another administration similar to Biden’s, the approach to border security changes significantly, reflecting on the historically low illegal border crossing numbers recorded this year.