Yakym: Border security is national security, the One Big Beautiful Bill secures both

Border security is national security. This should be a simple, bipartisan truth. Yet, under the Biden administration and its so-called border czar, Kamala Harris, that truth was ignored. The consequences were devastating.

Over 10 million illegal immigrants entered our country on their watch. Their open border policy was dangerous, and Americans paid the price with their safety and, in too many tragic cases, their lives.

Violent criminal aliens and gang members were allowed to wreak havoc in our communities. Laken Riley, a bright young nursing student out for a run, was brutally murdered by an illegal immigrant who had been released into our country not once but twice. Rachel Morin, a mother of two from Maryland, was killed by an MS-13 gang member who had already committed murder in El Salvador before slipping across our border.

Cartels got rich as they trafficked humans and fentanyl across the border, fueling the deadliest drug epidemic in American history and becoming the leading cause of death among Americans aged 18 to 45.

I’ve heard firsthand about the devastation from law enforcement across Indiana, and I’ve personally felt its impact. Just two years ago, I attended the funeral of a friend who died after taking medication laced with fentanyl.

Enough is enough. The Trump administration has reversed course, launching the most significant border security and deportation initiative in our nation’s history. The results speak volumes: in May of 2024, over 62,000 illegal migrants were released into the U.S. In May of 2025? Zero.

However, to permanently resolve this crisis, we need more than temporary gains. That’s why the One Big Beautiful Bill is a national security imperative.

It ensures we finish the border wall. It gives our Border Patrol agents the tools and support they need. It provides the resources to seal our border permanently and prevent the next wave of chaos from ever reaching American soil.

In a world filled with dangerous actors, from drug cartels to hostile foreign powers, we cannot afford to leave our border wide open.

Border security is national security. The One Big Beautiful Bill secures both.

Rep. Rudy Yakym (IN-02)