Heading into the 2020 election cycle, Republicans in the legislature are hitting all the buttons to fire up their base. We had the so-called “Born Alive” bill to excite the anti-abortion wing of the party and let them feel good about themselves by opposing baby killers. Now, they’re getting the anti-immigrant Republicans in gear by forcing local sheriffs to do the work of the ICE. In this case, Republican are again showing that their core values aren’t so core but winning elections matters most.

The bill being debated in the legislature would force local law enforcement, sheriffs, to do the bidding of ICE. Sheriffs’ departments would be required to check the immigration status of people arrested, inform ICE of the arrest, and hold the immigrants until ICE could pick them up.  Cooper and the Democrats are probably right when they say the bill is likely unconstitutional. It also steps all over the states’ rights that Republicans claim to love and empowers the federal government at the expense of local elected officials. 

However, politically the bill is fraught with risk for Democrats. It fires up the Republican base and reinforces the image that Democrats care more about protecting undocumented immigrants than American citizens. It may be a false narrative, but it works with certain people. 

The sheriffs who oppose the measure say that it interferes with their ability to build trusting relationships with immigrant community. They content they’ll take more criminals off the street and protect more people through cooperation. The bill moving through the legislature now undermines that effort. 

Given what’s happening on the border right now, Republicans are losing on the immigration issue. Separating young children from their parents and locking them up in unsanitary conditions offends most people’s sensibilities. The North Carolina bill will likely get obscured by the news from the Texas detention centers. 

Still, expect to see advertisements next year claiming Democrats let dangerous illegal immigrants back onto the streets when they could have been deported. Immigration may not be an issue that drives swing voters but it’s one that motivates Republican base voters. Trump is clearly betting on it. That’s why we’re seeing that bill right now and it’s why Republican want to see a prolonged and high-profile fight over it.