Florida Gov. and presidential candidate Ron DeSantis (R) announced his immigration and border security proposal Monday, as Valerie Gonzalez and Steve Peoples of the Associated Press report.  

According to Gonzalez and Peoples, the proposal "largely mirrors former President Donald Trump’s policies," and much of it "faces tall odds, requiring the reversal of legal precedents, approval from other countries or even an amendment to the U.S. Constitution."  

Like Trump, DeSantis promises to finish building a border wall and vows to end birthright citizenship, granted under the 14th Amendment. Other items include reinstating the "Remain in Mexico" policy, which would require Mexico’s approval, and ending a court-ordered policy that requires migrant families to be released from detention within 20 days. [Courts rejected a rule from the Trump administration that would have done so.] 

DeSantis also repeatedly referred to an "invasion," rhetoric that is in line with the dangerous Great Replacement Theory.  

J. David Goodman, Nicholas Nehamas and Miriam Jordan offer depth on the proposal in The New York Times — including DeSantis’ support for "using deadly force against suspected drug traffickers and others breaking through border barriers while ‘demonstrating hostile intent.’ " 

Welcome to Tuesday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s strategic communications VP, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Karime Puga, Christian Blair, Clara Villatoro and Katie Lutz. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected]. 

BOTH/AND — More than 9 in 10 evangelical Christians want more secure borders and policies that keep families together, and nearly 80% want unauthorized immigrants to have a chance to earn citizenship, Matt Soerens of the Evangelical Immigration Table tells Amy DeLaura of the Washington Examiner. "[W]hat evangelical Christians want, and actually I think what a lot of Americans want, is some balance," Soerens said in an interview during the Faith and Freedom Coalition conference. "We want secure borders, and we want functional legal processes." 

SOLUTIONS NEED SOWING — Utah farms are still experiencing labor shortages, Hugo Rikard-Bell reports for KSL News Radio. "It’s been a long time since people have come around looking for jobs on the farm," said Ron Gibson, dairy and onion farmer and president of the Utah Farm Bureau. Gov. Spencer Cox (R) points out that Utah agreed a decade ago on would-be solutions and says, "Most Republicans actually support fixing legal immigration and (making) it easier for immigrants to come legally, and most Democrats also believe that we should secure the border." 

CEDING TALENT — We’ve said this before but it bears repeating: Our antiquated immigration system is leading immigrants elsewhere, as Fiona Harrigan reports in Reason. "International entrepreneurs are moving to Canada and other countries that value talented revenue generators and job creators," said attorney Tahmina Watson, an expert on high-skilled and business immigration. As Harrigan notes, if the U.S. doesn’t change immigration policies, international professionals will "simply look for more welcoming pastures." 

MIGRANT TRANSPORTATION — Despite the current decrease in migrant arrivals at the border, El Paso County in Texas approved a $2.7 million contract to offer transportation to migrants released from immigration custody, reports Julian Resendiz of Border Report. The contract will take effect Saturday and cover up to 800 migrants per day. Encounters in El Paso have dropped from "a daily average of 1,522 in early May to 673 last week," Resendiz notes. 

Thanks for reading, 

Dan 

P.S. Good news for safer roads and for immigrants: Under a new state law, undocumented immigrants in Massachusetts can book driver’s license appointments starting Saturday, Sarah Betancourt of WGBH reports.