Wall doesn’t address key shift in border crossings

San Diego — President Donald Trump’s plan to erect a wall along the Mexican border overlooks a key change in how people enter the U.S. illegally: Many of them make no attempt to jump a fence or evade authorities; they simply turn themselves in and ask for asylum.

Asylum requests have surged in recent years, especially since 2014, when families and unaccompanied children fleeing drug violence in Central America overwhelmed agents in Texas.

Those who express fear of returning home are often freed into the United States with a notice to appear before an immigration judge. It often takes years for the clogged courts to decide asylum cases.

“Migration is very, very different now,” said Gil Kerlikowske, commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection from 2014 until last week. “People are coming up to our ports of entry, walking up and asking for some type of protection.”

Longtime Border Patrol agents say their jobs are increasingly about changing children’s diapers in holding facilities rather than chasing people through mountains and deserts.

Mark Morgan, who resigned under pressure Thursday as the Border Patrol chief only seven months after his appointment, told a Senate panel last month that he never thought buying baby powder and baby wipes would be part of his job.