‘CONTROL’ AGENT JOE: I’LL FIX CHAOS
. . . as officials bare WH ‘lie’
President Biden is vowing to get the situation at the southern border “under control” — as two officials said that, contrary to White House assurances, thousands of Haitian migrants are being released into the United States instead of being deported.
On Tuesday, following his address at the UN General Assembly, Biden was asked for his reaction to images that showed Border Patrol agents using their horses to keep Haitian migrants from crossing into the United States.
“Get it under control,” Biden said.
When asked to clarify whether the administration actually has it under control or will get it under control, he emphasized, “We will get it under control.”
Last week, more than 12,000 illegal migrants — most of them Haitians — camped underneath the International Bridge in Del Rio, Texas, after crossing over from Mexico.
Over the weekend, US officials said that they had moved more than 3,000 of those migrants from the camp under the bridge to planes back to Haiti or to detention centers.
But did they?
Late Tuesday night, The Associated Press reported that the Haitians have been freed on a “very, very large scale,” according to one American official — who put the figure in the thousands, thereby undercutting the administration’s claims.
The official has direct knowledge of operations but was not authorized to discuss the matter, thus spoke on condition of anonymity.
The AP said many Haitians have been released with notices to appear at an immigration office within 60 days, an outcome that requires less processing time from Border Patrol agents than ordering an appearance in immigration court.
A second U.S. official, also with direct knowledge and speaking on the condition of anonymity, said large numbers of Haitians were being processed under immigration laws and not being placed on the expulsion flights to Haiti that started Sunday.
The official couldn’t be more specific about how many.
On Monday, Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas warned migrants that the southern border is “not open,” and they will be returned home if they cross over illegally.
“If you come to the United States illegally, you will be returned. Your journey will not succeed and you will be endangering your life and your family’s lives. This administration is committed to developing safe, orderly and humane pathways for migration. This is not the way to do it,” he said in Del Rio.
This year, the United States has seen record numbers of migrants crossing the border, with officials having stopped at least 1,323,500 illegal immigrants attempting to cross from Mexico.
Officials confirmed on Sept. 15 that they encountered 208,887 migrants in August alone, marking the first time that more than 200,000 illegal immigrant encounters have been recorded in consecutive months since February and March 2000 (211,328 and 220,063, respectively).
Despite Mayorkas’ warning, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott slammed the White House’s efforts to control the situation at the border.
“The Biden administration is doing nothing to secure our border, because the administration has been promoting and allowing open border policies,” Abbott said Tuesday. “It has been the state of Texas that had to step up and address this challenge, and work with the local mayor, the local county judge and the local sheriff to accomplish several things.
“These Border Patrol officers are overwhelmed with the amount of work that they are required to do, and they’re suffering the consequences of an administration that is not providing them either the personnel or the resources they need.”
Over the weekend, the Department of Homeland Security announced that 400 Border Patrol agents would be sent to Del Rio to help restore order. “If additional staff is needed, more will be sent,” DHS said.