On Thursday, the U.S. House approved the hardest hitting anti-Illegals bill to come before it in over 20 years. The new bill which was approved by a vote of 257-167, sets rules for a major crackdown on those that enter the country illegally and the cities that protect them from federal law enforcement officials. It includes sections that crack down on so-called sanctuary cities and impose stiffer penalties on illegal immigrants who sneak back into the U.S. after having already been deported.

But it has been a long hard fight for lawmakers to get enough support to pass the legislation. Approval finally came after nearly two years to the day following the death of Kathryn Steinle on July 1^st 2015 in San Francisco. Ms. Steinle was murdered by an illegal alien while she was walking along the San Francisco waterfront with her father.

Ms. Steinle was killed when she was struck in the back by a bullet fired from a stolen gun in the possession of Juan Francisco Lopez- after it struck the ground, then ricocheted off the pavement. The wound causing her death two hours later at a nearby hospital. Lopez-Sanchez, was an Illegal alien from Mexico who had previously been deported five times was arrested and charged with her murder.

The approval of the stiff penalties contained in the new bills were seen as major wins for President Trump and the family of Ms. Steinle. Mr. Trump has given victims of illegal immigrant crimes an unprecedented platform in a debate that has in the past tried to make Americans feel sorry for the illegals by highlighting their situations.

The new Bill which has been named Kate’s Law, in memory of Ms. Steinle, would impose a two-year prison sentence on any illegal alien that has been previously deported or denied admission to the U.S., but chose to sneak in anyway. According to supporters of the bill, the object is to root out repeat-illegals who are responsible for a major string of high-profile crimes and prevent others from entering by making the penalties to extreme to risk.

Meanwhile the anti-sanctuary city bill which would guarantee local police work with immigration agents and would curtail lawsuits against communities that do cooperate with Homeland Security also passed on a vote of 228-195. This bill also allows the cutoff of all federal funds to any city that chooses to harbor or otherwise willing assist any illegal to evade of avoid the laws of the United States.