Growing number of Democrats call on Joe Biden to reverse plan to end Title 42
A Democratic governor and several Democrats in Congress are calling on President Joe Biden to reverse the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s decision to end Title 42. Title 42, a public health authority that enables federal agents to quickly expel illegal immigrants during a public health emergency, has been in effect since March 2020. On April 1, the CDC announced it was terminating it on May 23. U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Democrat from the border town of Laredo, Texas, told Fox News Sunday that Biden was listening to immigration activists, not border communities or their representatives such as himself. “But my question is, who’s listening to the men and women in green and in blue?” he asked, referring to Customs and Border Protection and Border Patrol agents. “And more importantly, who’s listening to the border communities, the sheriffs, the landowners, the rest of the people that live on the border?” he asked. Cuellar is facing a tough runoff election May 24 and, if he wins, a tough general election in November. “How can we have the federal public emergency extended to July 15 and say there’s a pandemic going on in the United States, but at the border, everything’s fine, and just let people into the United States,” he said, adding, “Those are mixed messages.” He also addressed the administration’s mixed messages when it comes to mandates. “How can you ask for international travelers to make sure … they’re vaccinated or even show their COVID-19 negative tests if they fly in?” Cueller asked, referring to vaccine mandates imposed on legal travelers when no such requirements exist for those who’ve entered the U.S. illegally and are then released into the U.S. by the Biden administration. Cuellar also posted pictures of existing overcrowded holding facilities at the border with Title 42 in place. “Title 42 is critical to ensuring the health and safety of migrants, law enforcement, and border residents,” he said. Democratic Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak wrote Biden late last week expressing concerns about Title 42 ending. He asked him “to reconsider any intentions of undoing Title 42 until there is a comprehensive plan for how the United States can avoid the humanitarian crisis this policy change would spark.” The CDC issued a statement on April 1 announcing it was ending Title 42 due to “an increased availability of tools to fight COVID-19 (such as highly effective vaccines and therapeutics)” and said, “suspending the right to introduce migrants into the United States is no longer necessary.” Instead, the Department of Homeland Security was implementing “appropriate COVID-19 mitigation protocols, such as scaling up a program to provide COVID-19 vaccinations to migrants and prepare for resumption of regular migration under Title 8,” the CDC said. But on April 12, Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra announced he was renewing the national public health emergency order “as a result of the continued consequences of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.” He said the public health emergency “exists and has existed since January 27, 2020, nationwide,” and was renewed by the Trump and Biden administrations eight times. Set to expire April 15, it was renewed effective April 16 for an additional 90 days. Arizona Democratic U.S. Sen. Krysten Sinema argues extending the public health emergency “proves the need to delay lifting Title 42 to protect the health and safety of Arizona communities and migrants.” In a statement, she said she would “keep pushing for transparency and accountability from the administration to help secure the border, keep Arizona communities safe, and ensure migrants are treated fairly and humanely.” Earlier this month, she joined a bipartisan effort to prevent Title 42’s end until after the national public health emergency order ends. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., the lead Democratic cosponsor, filed the Public Health and Border Security Act of 2022. Joining him as Democratic cosponsors were Sinema and Sens. Joe Manchin from West Virginia, Jon Tester from Montana, and Maggie Hassan from New Hampshire. U.S. Rep. Jared Goldman, D-Maine, was the lead Democratic cosponsor of the companion bill in the House. Joining him were Democratic cosponsors, Reps. Tom O’Halleran and Greg Stanton of Arizona, Chris Pappas of New Hampshire, Stephanie Murphy of Florida, Abigail Spanberger of Virginia, and Tim Ryan of Ohio. The bill isn’t likely to pass the House even if it were to pass the Senate. So far, 22 states have sued to stop the administration from halting Title 42 in two separate lawsuits. Unless the Biden administration is stopped by the courts, DHS announced last month measures it was putting in place to prepare for up to 18,000 people a day expected to enter U.S. custody once Title 42 is lifted. This estimate is in addition to the roughly 2 million people who were apprehended or encountered by Border Patrol agents in Biden’s first year in office while Title 42 was in place. All encounter numbers exclude “gotaways,” those who evade capture and don’t surrender at ports of entry. Republished with the permission of The Center Square.
Steve Marshall talks illegal immigration, drug trafficking at White House event
Concerned with border security and the crime associated with cross-border drug trafficking and illegal immigration, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall accepted an invitation to the White House to participate in a panel discussion on Monday about cooperation between federal, state, and local government in protecting national borders. Chaired by Mercy Schlapp, Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor for Strategic Communications, the panel consisted of Marshall, along with CBP Commissioner Kevin McAleenan, ICE Deputy Director Ron Vitiello, U.S. Senator David Perdue (R-GA), Governor Doug Ducey (R-AZ), and Cochise County, Arizona, Sheriff Mark J. Dannels in a discussion in the East Room of the White House. “Due to our state’s proximity to Atlanta, a major distribution point for drugs, and to Texas, a border state, Alabama has become a prime transit point for drug trafficking,” said Marshall. “We see marijuana, cocaine, meth, and now illicit fentanyl coming into our state as a result. The drug trade brings dangerous and violent illegal aliens into Alabama. Just this summer, our state was rocked by the brutal murder of a special needs 13-year-old girl—killed by affiliates of the Mexican drug cartel. I am grateful to the President and the White House for allowing me to share the observations of Alabama law enforcement and our citizens.” The day also featured an immigration a ceremony with President Donald Trump‘s that honored the men and women of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). There, agents, ho have been caught in the crosshairs of the immigration policy debate as they uphold their sworn duty to enforce the law, were brought to the podium to note their achievements in addressing unlawful border crossings and stemming the flow of illicit drugs. “As the chief law enforcement officer of the State of Alabama, I want to thank each member of ICE and CBP for your courage and your loyalty to enforcing the laws of this country in the face of irresponsible rhetoric and meritless attacks,” added Marshall. “The people of Alabama thank you, too. The work of ICE and CBP has a direct connection to the safety of the citizenry that extends far beyond those states that are on the border.” Marshall continued, “A shared mission and strong partnership between state and local law enforcement and the brave agents of ICE and CBP are in the best interest of public safety and I am pleased with the coordination that I see in Alabama. But in the immigration debate, public safety is not the only threat we must contend with. The rule of law—America’s bedrock principle—is under attack as well.” Marshall singled out Trump and former Alabama U.S. Senator, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions for their strong support of border security. “Under the previous administration, amnesty programs were unconstitutionally initiated by executive fiat and without any action from Congress. The former United States Attorney General turned a blind eye to sanctuary cities that brazenly refused to work with ICE and CBP,” said Marshall. “The Justice Department also failed to cooperate with Congress when Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed in relation to a botched gunwalking operation. Thanks to the leadership of President Trump, Attorney General Sessions, and Secretary [Kristjen] Nielsen, we have finally begun to see the pendulum swing in the other direction. But the work is far from over. We must secure our borders and we must restore respect for the rule of law throughout this country. The men and women of ICE and CBP are critical to securing our borders, and Attorneys General—I believe—must play a major role in restoring the rule of law.” Watch the White House panel discussion below:
Alabama to send National Guard troops to protect Mexican border
At the request of the Trump administration, Governor Kay Ivey and Alabama Adjutant General, Major General Sheryl Gordon, have approved the dispatch of Alabama National Guard troops to the nation’s Southwest border with Mexico. President Donald Trump sent a memo in April, authorizing the use of National Guard troops at the border, saying “the lawlessness that continues at our southern border is fundamentally incompatible with the safety, security, and sovereignty of the American people,” adding that his administration had “no choice but to act.” The Yellowhammer State has approved the deployment of one helicopter and five personnel members on Friday. The soldiers will be supporting the Texas National Guard and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “Alabama is committed to ensuring the safety and security of our nation. We have the greatest group of service men and women in the country,” Ivey said. “The Alabama National Guard stands ready to answer the call and we are proud to assist in the Southwest border mission.” The UH-72A Lakota helicopter will be dispatched from Birmingham on Tuesday. Joining the helicopter will be a flight crew and aircraft maintainers from the A Company, 1-114th Aviation Battalion, also out of Birmingham. “The Alabama National Guard is always ready to assist our friends and partners on the border and continue the ongoing mission for homeland security,” Gordon said. “We’re proud our soldiers are mentally and physically equipped to handle the challenges of the task.” The soldiers mission will operate be to provide additional support for observation and tracking of illegal activity around the U.S. border with Mexico. The soldiers will not be conducting law enforcement operations, but will be directed by the Texas National Guard. Alabama is the latest state to send equipment and soldiers to assist Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The last time the Alabama Guard sent Lakotas and crew members to the border was in 2016.
Visa overstays often overlooked in border security debate
More than 20 years had elapsed since the U.S. government estimated how many people entered the country legally and overstayed their visas. The updated numbers, finally published in January, were sobering. The Homeland Security Department said 527,127 people who were supposed to leave the country in the 2015 fiscal year overstayed, more than the population of Atlanta. And that was only those who entered by plane or ship, not on land. To put that in perspective, the Border Patrol made 337,117 arrests of people entering the country illegally during the same period, nearly all on the border with Mexico. More people overstayed visas than were caught crossing the border illegally. An estimated 40 percent of the 11.4 million people in the U.S. illegally overstayed visas, a crucial but often overlooked fact in the immigration debate. That percentage may grow as India and China replace Mexico as the largest senders of immigrants to the United States. Mexicans have long entered illegally through deserts of California, Arizona and Texas but the absence of a shared border makes that route unlikely for Asians. Overstays accounted for about 1 percent of 45 million visitors on business and tourist visas from October 2014 to September 2015, according to the long-awaited Homeland Security report. Canada occupied the top slot for overstays, followed by Mexico, Brazil, Germany and Italy. The United Kingdom, Colombia, China, India and Venezuela rounded out the top 10. The Pew Research Center said last year that more Mexicans were leaving the United States than coming, ending one of biggest immigration waves in U.S. history. Lack of jobs for unskilled labor after the Great Recession is widely cited as a reason but border enforcement played a part. The Border Patrol more than quintupled to 21,444 agents in 2011 from 4,028 in 1993. The U.S. erected fences along about 650 miles of border with Mexico, nearly all of it in the final years of George W. Bush’s administration. Last year, Border Patrol arrests – one gauge of illegal crossings – fell to the lowest level since 1971. About five years ago, the busiest corridor for illegal crossings began shifting from Arizona to South Texas, where roughly two of every three apprehended are from countries other than Mexico. Large numbers of women and children from Central America turned themselves in to U.S. authorities, triggering lengthy proceedings in clogged immigration courts. Images of children crammed into Customs and Border Protection holding cells made big news in 2014. “We weren’t chasing people. People were walking up, looking for someone in a green uniform,” said Customs and Border Protection Commissioner R. Gil Kerlikowske. “There were smugglers that would call 911 and say, ‘Hey, we got some people coming across.’ It was a border management issue, not a border security issue … Do you have health care personnel? Do you have food? Do you have clothing?” The government has taken steps to better track overstays, but it’s a tall order without a good checkout system. Airports weren’t designed to inspect visitors when they leave. The U.S. and Canada have exchanged names of people from third countries who enter on their shared border since 2013, but Mexico generally doesn’t track who enters by land. Congress has long pressed for biometric screening such as fingerprints, facial images or eye scans on departing visitors, but financial and logistical challenges have been enormous. “It’s tough because we just don’t have the infrastructure,” said Jim Williams, a former Homeland Security official who oversaw efforts to introduce biometric screening from 2003 to 2006. “It’s an open door. You (should) treat it like a house. You want to let people in you trust and you also want to know if they ever left.” Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson pledged to have biometric checks on departing visitors at the busiest airports by 2018. But the ambitious target will likely fall to his successor. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
