Republicans have never been as good as Democrats at sticking together when their party and their president need them most. That helps explain why a GOP senator from the reddest state in the country just stuck a big proverbial knife into President Trump’s back at a time when he needs his party to back him on his mass deportation policy, which he ran on and which many Republicans also ran on and won.
Senator James Lankford is facing intense criticism from conservatives after a CNN appearance in which he appeared to diverge from Trump’s hardline position on illegal immigration and due process for non-citizens. Lankford, who represents Oklahoma—the most Republican-leaning state in the 2024 presidential election—seemed to cast doubt on the urgency and scale of Trump’s proposed deportation efforts. Already under scrutiny for co-sponsoring a bipartisan immigration bill previously labeled by critics as a form of mass amnesty, Lankford is once again drawing fire from the GOP base.
“What’s been confusing on this is some people see due process like as an American citizen. That’s a right to a jury trial. That’s all those different things. That’s not true for due process for someone who’s not a citizen of the United States,” Lankford told CNN. “It’s a different process.”
Lankford continued, “It’s often just literally what people call an immigration judge is not a typical federal judge or a state judge. This is someone that’s in the bureaucracy that their task for DHS is that task on it. So they’re a government employee career that’s an immigration judge.” But the he said: “So it’s a very different process for it. But yes, there is a — there’s a need to be able to give an opportunity for someone to be able to make an argument before they’re… removed in the country.”
Is he kidding? Does Lankford seriously believe every one of the 20 million people Biden let into the country illegally should get ‘their day in court?’ There’s nothing in immigration statutes that would justify such an insane policy. Unfortunately, he wasn’t kidding; anything to get in the good graces of those fair-minded journalists at CNN.
Lankford got a lot of pushback on social media, as he should have. What a ridiculous proposition to make.
No, Senator. They didn’t want to follow our immigration process. They don’t get to pick and choose.
— Breanna Morello (@BreannaMorello) May 7, 2025
How many times? Maryland Man had several chances in front of multiple immigration judges. How many is enough?
— @amuse (@amuse) May 7, 2025
From the guy that said we needed an amnesty bill to close the border.
All we need is new Senators @SenatorLankford
— Steph (@Steph93065) May 7, 2025
If you come into the country illegally, the only process you are “due” is deportation.
Anything else is a courtesy.
— ????southerngalpal ???? (@belleofva) May 7, 2025
This guy really needs to get run in 2028. He’s learned nothing from his meddling with the border and illegal immigration.
— AdamInHTownTX (@AdamInHTownTX) May 7, 2025
