Immigration (legal pathway)
John Cornyn (R)
Cornyn engaged with the 2013 Gang of Eight immigration reform — adding the 'border surge' Cornyn-Hoeven amendment that doubled Border Patrol agents to 38,405 — but ultimately voted against the final bill citing path-to-citizenship concerns. He co-sponsored the 2024 Lankford-Murphy-Sinema border-security framework which collapsed under House Republican opposition after Trump's intervention, and he publicly defended the package's enforcement provisions. He supports increased H-1B and H-2A allocations for skilled and agricultural labor, has championed DACA-recipient legal certainty in narrower bills, and voted to fund the border wall. He has been measured in the Paxton-led litigation against DACA, supporting the legal challenge while publicly endorsing congressional action to provide certainty for long-term residents. He has co-sponsored remain-in-Mexico-style enforcement frameworks while opposing family separation in policy and rhetoric.
James Talarico (D)
Talarico frames border policy as 'our front porch — welcome mat out front and a lock on the door,' saying these are not mutually exclusive values. He would pass comprehensive immigration reform creating a path to citizenship for long-term residents, spouses of citizens, and DREAMers, with temporary work permits for recent arrivals. He would refocus ICE resources on traffickers, gang members, and human traffickers — 'not our neighbors who contribute to our communities, pay taxes, and pose no threat to our safety.' He would ban ICE agents from wearing masks or refusing to show identification and hold them accountable for abuses. He would hire more immigration judges, modernize port-of-entry security, and open a Senate district office in El Paso (the first since Phil Gramm retired in 2001).
Sources
- Sen. John Cornyn, official Senate website and 2026 re-election campaign issues page, accessed May 2026 (cornyn.senate.gov; johncornyn.com). (full list)
- Talarico for Texas, official campaign issues pages (taxes, education, healthcare, immigration, social media/AI, freedom-family-faith, public-safety-justice, corruption-democracy, labor-business), accessed May 2026. (full list)
- Gabby Birenbaum, 'On the issues: A Q&A with Ken Paxton and John Cornyn,' Texas Tribune, April 20, 2026; companion Cornyn interview, April 2026. (full list)
- Cornyn vote on S. 744, Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act, June 27, 2013 (voted no on final passage after Gang of Eight engagement); RESULTS Act / Cornyn-Heller substitute amendment; 'border surge' Cornyn-Hoeven amendment incorporated into the bill. (full list)
- El Paso Matters, 'At El Paso ICE facility, James Talarico argues for pro-immigrant, pro-security approach,' Feb. 21, 2026. (full list)