Border security doesn’t end at the border. Perhaps, if the Biden Administration hadn’t spent the past four years putting out a welcome mat for millions of illegal immigrants, communities wouldn’t be dealing with the harm caused by unvetted, undocumented individuals.

Nor would they have to face pushback from politicians who put illegal immigrants before citizens.

But some lawmakers are taking action to stem the tide of mayhem through the Laken Riley Act, passed by the House on Tuesday and up for advancement in the Senate. Riley was the 22-year-old Georgia nursing school student who was murdered last year by an illegal immigrant.

The bill, authored by Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., would change federal law to require ICE, operating under the Homeland Security Department, to issue detainers and take custody of illegal immigrants charged with theft and other crimes, it was reported.

“We’re going to detain and deport illegal aliens who commit burglary, theft, larceny, shoplifting, certainly vicious and violent crime, and I can’t believe anybody would be opposed to that,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said.

Johnson was wrong. There were people opposed to that, including eight out of nine members of the Massachusetts Democratic delegation. Reps. Richard Neal, James McGovern, Lori Trahan, Jake Auchincloss, Katherine Clark, Seth Moulton, Ayanna Pressley and William Keating all voted no when the House took up the act.

The lone holdout: Stephen Lynch.

In a system that lets too many people slip through the cracks, at least Massachusetts has one voice in the House that’s working to solve the problem.

And the problem is big. The Boston Herald reported on a massive batch of “Serious Incident” reports from the Bay State’s migrant-family shelter program which revealed incidents of physical and sexual assault in state-funded shelters since 2022.

Illegal immigrants have made headlines after being charged with child rape and drug trafficking. And that’s just Massachusetts.

The Laken Riley Act adds theft and shoplifting to the list of crimes eligible for detention and deportation. In progressive circles, shoplifting and some thefts are no big deal, not even worthy of prosecution under a certain dollar value.

These “victimless crimes” are why consumers have to ask store clerks to unlock cases before they can make a purchase. One thing the Laken Riley Act does is underscore that crime is crime, and it has consequences. Entering the country illegally is also a crime, but making that point to progressives is an exercise in futility.

Dems who voted no have argued that the act wasn’t well-constructed and would make the immigration system more complicated. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) said that he wanted to dig into the costs associated with the bill, including how to pay for detentions, according to The Hill.

Now Democrats are concerned with spending money?

Nearly a year ago, Jose Ibarra, an illegal immigrant cited for shoplifting but released from custody, murdered Laken Riley while she was out for a jog. A series of “ifs” preceded the crime: If Ibarra had not been released into the country after first being apprehended by border agents in 2022, if he hadn’t been released after the shoplifting charge, if it weren’t so easy to evade authorities by moving states, etc.

Thanks to those who voted yes on the Laken Riley Act, including Rep. Lynch who swam against the Democratic tide, it will be that much harder to slip through the cracks.

Editorial cartoon by Al Goodwyn (Creators Syndicate)