Red State Lawmaker Faces Intense Backlash Over Pro-Immigration Comments

Indiana Lieutenant Governor Micah Beckwith is facing intense scrutiny after he appeared to call for an increase in Haitian “asylum seekers” coming to the deep red state.

“Yesterday, I sat with Haitian pastors from Marion County. Their people have endured earthquakes and violence, and now more than 40,000 are seeking asylum here in Indiana,” Beckwith posted on X alongside photos of his meeting with the pastors.

“We spoke about barriers of language and culture while also discussing the power of faith and family. What I saw was not a community asking for a handout, but people determined to work hard, raise their children to become contributors to the great Hoosier state, and assimilate to the American way of life.”

The post did not go over well with conservatives on social media, many of whom pointed to the intense focus on Haitian immigration to the U.S. during the 2024 presidential election. In one of the most memorable campaign moments, Trump pointed to statements from leaders  in Springfield, Ohio, as well as video evidence, concerning Haitian migrants killing and eating pets.

“They’re eating the dogs,” Trump famously said during his debate with then-Vice President Kamala Harris.

Haitian immigration also became a hot-button issue in Chareleroi, Pennsylvania a town of just 4,00 people, that saw its Haitian immigrant population balloon by 2,000% over the past two years. The immigrants — who were unilaterally given legal status by the Biden-Harris Administration — were hired for cheap wages and subsidized by U.S. taxpayers, including support for housing, transportation to and from work and a number of additional benefits on the taxpayer’s dime.

In response to Beckwith’s post, social media users pointed to his past comments on mass deportations and Haitian immigration in particular.  “We do not want multiculturalism, we want assimilation into the American way of life. And if you will not do that, then you do not belong here, so we are going to find you and we are going to remove you,” he said in response to the Springfield, Ohio stories last year.

The GOP lawmaker soon locked replies to his post and issued a follow-up after intense backlash. “If you know my stance on immigration, you should also know the sentiment behind this. I have said time and time again that our borders should be shut down, and we need the federal government to halt any more asylum seekers until we can get a handle on the current crisis,” the lieutenant governor wrote.

“If people come in through the front door and legally enter the country with the intent to assimilate and raise their children as hardworking Americans, we should be open to helping them. I am not advocating for us to have Haitians come to America or Indiana. I am saying that if Haitians come to our state, they must do it legally, learn English, and assimilate to our culture.”

President Donald Trump has taken steps to reverse the temporary legal status granted to Haitian migrants, as well as other nationalities, that was controversially rolled out by the Biden Administration.

TPS grants recipients with protection from deportation and allows them to receive work permits in the U.S. if they come from a country deemed unsafe to return to. Republicans have long been skeptical of the program, which was applied to nationals from 17 countries by the Biden Administration.

In a press release, DHS said TPS has been “exploited and abused” and noted that Haiti had been designated for TPS since 2010. More than 520,000 Haitians were estimated to be eligible for TPS protection in July of last year, according to a report from Fox News.