By Suzanne Bowdey

Democrats are good actors, but they aren’t that good. After three and a half years of Joe Biden’s wide open borders, the president’s party wants voters to believe they suddenly care about the crisis. Good luck, Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) wrote. The only thing they care about, he argued, is their own political vulnerability. And while Americans have made it quite clear that they want to end the lawlessness, it’s doubtful that they’ll “hire the arsonists to put out the fire,” Thune jabbed.

After last week, when Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) reintroduced his failure of a border bill, no one is convinced Democrats can pull off this charade — or negotiate in good faith. The legislation, which is all part of a “new stunt” to “impersonate Republicans,” Thune argued, bombed by even bigger margins the second time around. That was no surprise to the policy’s critics, including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who insisted the Democrats’ proposal “would actually make the problem worse.”

On “This Week on the Hill” with Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, the Louisiana leader pointed out that the Left’s solution is to make “President Biden’s crazy policies” law. It was a “show vote,” he said, “to give cover to some vulnerable Senate Democrats,” but it would do nothing — zero — to stop the flood of migrants overwhelming U.S. cities.

“Listen, we’re coming up on an election now,” Johnson explained. “We’re six months out, and this has gone on for three and a half years. We documented, as you and I have discussed, 64 specific executive actions that President Biden and his administration took since the day he walked into the Oval Office to open that border wide. They did it intentionally,” he pointed out. “It was designed that way, and that’s why they’ve never closed it. As we sit here today, President Biden has the same exact executive authority to close and secure the border that he’s had since the day he walked into the Oval Office, but he’s done the opposite. He’s refused to use that authority. Now they’re panicking. You know why? Because it’s the number one issue around the country.”

The speaker, who’s traveled to 110 cities in 28 states in the last six months, hears more about this one issue than anything else. “I’m telling you, everywhere we go, it doesn’t matter where I am geographically in the United States, [people’s] first [concern] is that open border, because every state is a border state. The Democrats are in panic right now because they know that. And they’re feeling that even in deep blue districts, in blue cities, they’re feeling it. So many of the candidates, Democrats, are clamoring to try to show somehow that they actually care about the border when their votes show the opposite.”

Schumer’s “pathetic ploy” to hold a vote “is a fool’s errand,” Johnson insisted. “I think the voters understand that.” The real problem, he wanted people to know, is what could happen if illegal immigration isn’t addressed. “We’ve been saying this for quite some time. I was accused when I started saying this a couple of years ago of engaging in some sort of conspiracy theory — but very clearly, they want illegal immigrants to be turned into voters. That’s patently clear.”

And, to most people’s disgust, it’s already happening. “Some municipalities are doing it, including right here in the District of Columbia, which we have legislation to address,” Johnson said, referring to the SAVE Act that will require proof of citizenship to vote in every state for federal elections, which Congress has jurisdiction over. “That is a really important principle,” he continued. “Only American citizens should decide American elections. But not all Democrats agree with that. And they want to affect the census in six years by putting people around and changing the congressional map. And they want to affect elections between now and then. We’ve got to stop it.”

As it currently stands, anyone who lives in the District for at least 30 days can vote in local elections. All you have to do is go to the local welfare office or DMV and fill out the paperwork. There’s no way to verify if people who check the box, “Yes, I am an American citizen,” truly are. But, Johnson vowed, “We’re going to ensure that the D.C. City Council’s crazy agenda to allow illegals to decide American elections is not allowed to stand. I think that’ll pass in a bipartisan vote. Sadly, I wish all Democrats would be with us, but I think many of them won’t be. And that’ll be a very telling thing when you see that voting record and determine how you vote for your elected member of the House this fall.”

Right now, reports estimate that there are as many as 17 million illegals in the country — an astronomical number that could absolutely affect the election, the House leader warns. “Just think of it. … If just one out of every 100 of them tried to vote in a local election — because they’re spread all around the country — you could change the outcome of the presidential race or certainly congressional races.”

The stakes, Johnson points out, have never been higher. “These are expected to be tight margins this year, so we have to make sure that the sanctity of American elections is protected.

Suzanne Bowdey serves as editorial director and senior writer at The Washington Stand.