Missouri AG slams Kansas City mayor for welcoming Mayorkas' illegal immigrant parole program

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey is calling out Kansas City mayor Quinton Lucas after he announced that illegal immigrants would be welcome to come to the city and work under Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas’ illegal immigrant parole program.

Bailey highlighted how the open border policies have real-world consequences in a letter to Mayor Lucas that was shared exclusively with Fox News Digital.

"An illegal alien from Venezula, who had repeatedly flouted U.S. immigration laws, was actually granted a work permit under a misguided and illegal policy enacted by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas," Bailey stated. "In February, he brutally murdered a young college student named Laken Hope Riley."

Bailey shared that Lucas failed to acknowledge this and openly welcomed all seeking refuge in Kansas City.

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"Yet, against the backdrop of literally millions of illegal aliens flooding our borders, overwhelming the social safety net of large American cities, and in some cases even committing violent crimes against our citizens, you are actively encouraging them to come to the Show Me State," Bailey said.

Bailey referenced the post Lucas wrote on social media proclaiming:

"All are welcome in Kansas City. Proud to work with my fellow mayors from Denver and NYC as we work to ensure decompression of new arriving communities." 

Bailey added that Lucas did later amend his statement and only extended the offer to "persons who are lawfully present, with lawful work permits," but said that Lucas ignored the underlying issue.

"Secretary Mayorkas' open border programs are themselves illegal. Your statements are wildly irresponsible," Bailey said. "Not only do you ignore the fact that Laken Riley's killer has a so-called "work permit," but you are actively encouraging Missouri businesses to become entangled in a fundamentally unlawful program, and exposing them to legal liability in the process."

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Bailey said that allowing and welcoming illegal immigrants violates a Missouri law that prohibits state businesses from hiring or employing illegal immigrants. It also makes it a felony to knowingly transport illegal immigrants in the state of Missouri.

"Make no mistake, my office will do everything in its power to take legal action against any person or entity found to be in violation of these statutes," Bailey proclaimed. 

Bailey continued stating that Missouri will now join 19 other state attorney generals who are suing Secretary Mayorkas over his "disastrous" and illegal parole program that unlawfully creates a pathway to citizenship for hundreds or thousands of illegal immigrants.

In his letter, Bailey stated that Mayorkas' illegal immigrant parole program would allow up to 360,000 illegal immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to be "paroled" into the United States every year.

"Your open invitation for illegal aliens to come to Missouri is not only dangerous but comes at great expense to Missouri taxpayers, residents, and business owners," Bailey said. 

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Bailey's letter to Lucas comes a day after Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., gave fiery testimony to the Senate for striking down Mayorkas' impeachment trial.

Sen. Hawley joined other Republican lawmakers who tore into Secretary Mayorkas on Thursday over the release of the Venezuelan illegal immigrant now charged with the murder of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley – accusing the agency of having released him into the U.S. unlawfully.

Lawmakers grilled the embattled secretary on Jose Ibarra, an illegal immigrant from Venezuela, who is accused of killing Riley on Feb. 22, while she was jogging at the University of Georgia in Athens.

In his testimony, Sen. Hawley revealed that Ibarra had been given a work permit, despite having been accused of a crime against a child in New York and having the charges later expunged by local authorities.

"Nothing is done to this guy. He had a criminal record to start with, he's in the country on illegal grounds. You have falsely and illegally allowed him in. He committed a crime against a child. He's not prosecuted, it's expunged. In November, get this, in November, Ibarra files an application for employment authorization. And unbelievably, on December 9, 2023, it's approved," Hawley said.

The Biden administration initially announced the parole program for Venezuelans in October, which allowed a limited number to fly directly into the U.S. as long as they had not entered illegally and already had a sponsor in the United States. 

However, in January, President Biden announced that the program would be expanded to include Haitians, Nicaraguans and Cubans and that the program would allow up to 30,000 a month into the U.S. The program also allows for migrants to receive work permits and a two-year authorization to live in the U.S.

Fox News Digital reached out to Mayor Quinton Lucas for comment. 

Fox News' and Caroline Elliott contributed to this report.