WASHINGTON For months, Republicans have shouted from the rooftops about a migrant crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border and how President Joe Biden needs to act to address it, insisting the flow of migrants is an urgent national security threat.

Now many on the right are urging their party to reject the very same things they said were needed to fix the problem, including tougher enforcement measures and a proposal to automatically shut down border crossings when it is overwhelmed. Instead, they appear set on impeaching the top Cabinet official in charge of the border, even though there is no evidence of a crime.

The GOPs contortions arent just grating for Democrats but also on some conservative Republicans who have been deeply involved in crafting bipartisan legislation, which is expected to be unveiled soon, that would overhaul how migrants are processed at the border.

It is interesting. Republicans four months ago... locked arms together and said, Were not going to give you money for this. We want a change in law, Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.), the GOPs lead negotiator on a deal pairing immigration changes with assistance to Ukraine and other allies, said on Fox News Sunday.

A few months later, when were finally getting to the end, theyre like, Oh, just kidding. I actually dont want a change in law because its a presidential election year, he added.

The deal being negotiated in Congress would reportedly require the U.S. to close the border if about 5,000 migrants cross illegally on any given day. It would also speed up the asylum process, which has long suffered from a lack of resources and an overwhelmed immigration court system.