Legal and policy loopholes at America’s southern border are spurring a renewed influx of illegal migrants.
After a steady decline in apprehensions, U.S. Customs and Border Protection reports that arrests are climbing again.
CBP confirmed Thursday that detention centers are at maximum capacity, and that detainees are being released with flimsy administrative “notices to appear” for court hearings later. The aliens rarely return.
“The due-process framework to protect immigrants is being exploited,” says Ronald Vitiello, CBP’s acting deputy commissioner. “This encourages others to come.”
Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen is pushing for removal of illegal border crossers in a “quick and rapid manner,” Vitiello said. But understaffed immigration courts and aggressive lawyering block the way. A process that should take days stretches into months.
CBP says “family units” are a growing component on the influx – perhaps enticed by dreams of an amnesty for DACA recipients (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals).
More nefarious characters are coming, too. CBP reports that assaults on Border Patrol agents were up 45 percent in the past year. The slaying of a patrol agent near El Paso remains under investigation
Is the so-called Trump Effect waning? “There’s some of that,” Vitiello avers. An inability or unwillingness to expedite removals at the border sends a signal that business could be reverting to usual.
Indeed, the 310,000 border apprehensions last year were 24 percent below the previous year, and the fewest since 1971.
Vitiello is hopeful that the 5,000 new Border Patrol Agents requested by the president will be hired and deployed soon.
Meantime, CBP remains chronically undermanned, due to high attrition and what DHS Deputy Secretary Elaine Duke benignly calls “career paths” into other agencies. Congress previously approved funding for 2,000 new Border Patrol agents, yet 1,000 slots remain vacant.
7 Comments
Stop this invasion. Build the wall!
We,as a nation cannot allow illegals to continue their actions of placing unnecessary pressure to drain our country of financial and natural resources. Out taxes are raised to benefit illegals. California is experiencing a drought. The freeways are giant parking lots. Housing is no longer affordable. The schools are not able to educate our children.
As far as that severe drought, the Democrats in California will no doubt put in place their usual emergency plan for every event: Bring in 5 million immigrants immediately, preferably illegals with an 8th grade education. Either that or blame the drought on the Russians.
The Democrats are very, very shortsighted. The large volumes of poorly educated Hispanics are not coming to help to build our country, they are coming to tear it down. They promptly ran their countries into the ground, and if not stopped, they’ll do EXACTLY the same here! They don’t even care to learn English, much less blending into our society. Here in southern California, there are large blocks of neighborhoods where only Spanish is spoken and all music played in Spanish. Welcome to Guadalajara!
What the shortsighted Democrats don’t realize is that once the Hispanic culture firmly plants it’s base here, they’ll turn on Democrats the SAME as they challenge Trump today. Remember what happened at Cryin’ Chuck’s residence when Chuck Shummer caved, agreed to fund the US government and keep sending paychecks to our military? The DACA troublemakers caused ruckus there late at night, screaming, “If we can’t dream, you can’t sleep”! Yep, that’s ONLY the beginning of things to come if they don’t get their way.
The democrats, do not want to keep them out. They need voters, & they love it, the more, the better. They cheat, lye, & steal, to get votes. They will do anything to stay in power. They are a great danger to the well being of this republic.
ARREST THE HORDE…WE NEED A FENCE AS HIGH AS THE ONE THAT MEXICO HAS TO KEEP GUATEMALA AT BAY!
I agree Diana. I have nothing against Guatemalans, but the democrats have opened the gates for the last 40 or 45 yrs. to let in anyone from any place on the planet. It is time for it to stop. They should be required to wait for a minimum of 5 yrs. before being allowed to vote. We should go back to the way it used to be fifty yrs. ago. you come here, you come through Ellis Island. The immigrants were good ppl., who were not allowed into the country unless they were ppl. of character, & able to work & take care of themselves. Mr Trump seems to me to be a pretty fair, individual, I think he would be fair in trying to come up with a DACA plan, if the left will work with him. The dems. wants to keep pushing this Russian collusion, “destroy Trump” campaign. They are only focused on getting Mr. Trump out of office. I am sick of it. I will NEVER AGAIN vote for another democrat for any office. They are traitors to this republic.