This week, the acting head of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) stated that a Mexican state stopped taking families and small children back in, just a few days into the Biden administration. Accordingly, this move contributed to the release of families into the United States by the Biden administration.
Since Biden took office, the administration has been dealing with a massive surge of migrants crossing the border. In the month of April alone, there were over 178,000 encounters were recorded. This is an increase from the existing high number of encounters in March and February.
Over 178,000 border encounters in April.
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By any objective measure, we have a crisis at our southern border. It's time for the Biden Administration to address this humanitarian crisis. pic.twitter.com/dU0w3pMioO— Rep. Mike Johnson (@RepMikeJohnson) May 18, 2021
However, the Biden administration defended that they have in fact been expelling migrant families and single adults under the Trump-era Title 42; they also repeatedly mentioned that they were not able to expel families with children under 7 years of age due to the refusal of Mexican officials to take them.
An Overflow of Migrants
On Wednesday, acting CBP Commissioner Troy Miller told the House lawmakers about the surge that would continue to overwhelm officials in the Rio Grande Valley sector. According to Miller, this started just a few days after Biden took office.
Miller further mentioned that a northern Mexican state, Tamaulipas, stopped accepting back families with young children.
The acting CBP commissioner also added that this move from the Mexican state led to the difficult situation in March wherein Border Patrol would not only release migrants inside the United States but would release them without giving any Notice to Appear in court. Instead, what is only given is a notice to report to their local Immigration Customs Enforcement office.
Biden admin revived “Catch and Release”
Miller said that on March 19, they encountered 2,439 migrants along with the ports of entry in Rio Grande Valley alone. On top of that, they also have over 2,600 unaccompanied children. Out of this number 1,943 were held over 72 hours in the facilities.
The choice to give families notice to report instead of notice to appear decreases the paperwork. This also allows them to be processed and released faster. Accordingly, said the move also relieves pressure on overcrowded migrant facilities and overwhelmed government agents.
Joe Biden’s border security report card gets an F.
He’s revived catch and release from the grave, halted the construction of the border wall, and put the lives of countless Americans in jeopardy.
When will he step up and act? pic.twitter.com/MftwlMvPr3
— Virginia Foxx (@virginiafoxx) March 16, 2021
Meanwhile, the Biden administration was criticized for bringing back “catch and release”. Said policy allows the U.S. government to release encountered migrants inside the United States. They also come under fire for releasing migrants without any Notice to Appear. Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona even slammed the administration for shirking its responsibilities.
On Wednesday, Rep. Biggs wrote a letter to Secretary Mayorkas. He stated that illegal migrants are being released from custody without the necessary NTAs. He added that the Department of Homeland Security is irrationally assuming these illegal migrants to voluntarily report to ICE to obtain a charging document and court date.
