Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) insisted on Wednesday morning that he was joking when he made a comment to other senators on Tuesday night promising an immigration deal after the gun control deal he negotiated in the Senate.
“The Democrats and their allies in the media really can’t take a joke. There’s no secret amnesty bill,” Cornyn told Breitbart News on Wednesday morning. His office told Breitbart News that the senator was joking and there are no immigration negotiations nor are there expected to be.
After Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) tapped Cornyn to negotiate a deal on gun control, he was reported to on Tuesday night promised to move forward on a deal on amnesty.
“First guns, now it’s immigration,” Cornyn told Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA).
Andrew Surabian, a former Donald Trump administration official, said in reaction to Cornyn’s pledge for amesty, “From selling out on gun control to selling out on amnesty in light speed.”
The blowback was severe though, and now Cornyn is saying that comment was a joke.
Sens. Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Cornyn have continued to push for amnesty with the help of Democrat allies, including Sens. Padilla and Dick Durbin (D-IL), the Senate Democrat whip.
“The only way that we’re going to get real progress is to have a four-pillar discussion — so immigration reform, DACA, border security and then I think asylum reform is pretty important, particularly with that’s going on with Title 42,” Tillis said in April.
“We’ve got a starting list. There could be some more. But it’s a starting point. I’ve talked to four or five Republican senators today. There’s a genuine interest in doing something,” Durbin said.
Cornyn was recently booed at the Texas annual Republican Party convention last Friday over his work with Democrats to pass gun control.
The boos apparently did not faze Cornyn.
“After Sen @JohnCornyn was met with such hatred at the @TexasGOP convention in Houston, I’m told he said to a few people, ‘I’ve never given in to mobs and I’m not starting today,’” Cornyn’s retweet read.
This piece has been updated after publication to reflect Cornyn saying on Wednesday that he was joking when he said this on Tuesday night.
Sean Moran is a congressional reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.
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