In fact, this bill does not fund anything that might deter immigration. Instead, it calls on the Department of Homeland Security to ensure Border Patrol agents receive appropriate religious counseling. It does not require Border Patrol to be staffed exclusively with anti-vaxxers, but it does require DHS to “make every effort to retain Department personnel who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19.” There is.
The collection of culture war grievances sprinkled throughout the Republican bill shows how insane it was to believe that Republicans would work in good faith to solve what has become President Biden’s biggest political headache. is highlighted. Why do that when you can impeach Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas instead!
Nevertheless, the Biden administration’s many sophisticated and creative efforts to slow the flow of humans toward the southern border are a result of efforts provided by House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) and his friends in Congress. It doesn’t seem to be as effective as flotsam.
In just three years, Mr. Biden has issued 535 immigration-related executive actions, far exceeding the 472 taken by President Donald Trump, according to the Migration Policy Institute. Biden also plans to move beyond his predecessor’s heavy-handed tactics of intercepting, caging and deporting asylum-seekers to deter illegal immigration and direct migrants to official channels. are doing.
But despite all the creative policymaking, U.S. Border Patrol agents have recorded about 6.3 million encounters with migrants since President Biden took office. More than 2.4 million people were allowed to enter the country. And they keep coming. In December, the number reached 370,000, a record high. Of these, 250,000 people dashed across the border illegally, the very act the government has worked hard to stop.
Approximately 300,000 asylum seekers from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela have been offered humanitarian parole who have applied through official channels to deter them from sneaking across the border and turning themselves in. It was the purpose. Migrants used the CBP One app while crossing Mexico.
Efforts to coordinate immigration policy with some countries in Latin America (opening offices in several countries and processing applications from immigrants closer to their home countries) will reduce immigration to the Western Hemisphere before arriving in the United States. The purpose is to manage the movement of people.
There was also an impasse in the policy mix. The administration has terminated an agreement with Mexico that allows it to accept tens of thousands of rejected asylum seekers each month. Repatriation flights to Venezuela have begun. It declared that anyone caught attempting to enter the United States without authorization would be considered ineligible for asylum in most cases.
But despite all the smarts it has put into creating incentives and deterrents, the government’s border control strategy still doesn’t get more than an A for effort. The new tools aren’t working in terms of holding the line.
Deterrence is not deterrence. The presumption of ineligibility for refugee status has proven to be ineffective. That’s because migrants caught between points of entry still need to be tested, and there isn’t enough processing capacity. Programs that quickly remove ineligible families handle only a small number of cases for similar reasons.
Immigrants who want to live in the United States, whether they’re fleeing violence or looking for work, have a chance of somehow surviving what could be a years-long wait before a judge. I still think that is quite high. Immigration courts stalled. And they’re not wrong.
If there’s a silver lining to Mr. Johnson and his colleagues in the House of Representatives’ decision to reject any deal that might favor Mr. Biden, it’s that it prevents bad border policy from spilling over. The Senate Republicans’ demands that Mr. Biden chose to accept included boneheaded provisions, such as threatening to “shut down the border,” whatever that means.
Immigration issues will never go away. Desperate people will continue toward the U.S. border, driven by violence, hunger, or a desire for prosperity. History shows that gas-guzzling, coronavirus-infected Border Patrol agents and border walls won’t be able to stop them.
Fortunately, a solution exists. The U.S. economy could use more immigrants to replace its aging workforce. The same could be said of other countries in the hemisphere, which until recently had not considered becoming a haven for migrants. There are ways to turn immigration into a win-win narrative that has persisted throughout this country’s history, despite its challenges.
However, this requires Congressional action. To do that, Republicans need to let go of the culture war flotsam and get serious about policymaking.