A shell game on immigration
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has exposed sanctuary city virtue signaling by sending busloads of migrants who entered his state illegally to northern U.S. cities where the authorities vow not to cooperate with immigration authorities. As a result, he has earned the wrath of progressive activists and forced the liberal mayors of New York, Chicago and Denver to cry uncle.
Less publicized is a Biden administration program that also transports migrants throughout the country under the guise of easing pressure at the southern border.
The program allows would-be border crashers to use a Customs and Border Patrol app to make appointments with U.S. officials at land ports rather than enter the country illegally. Those who secure one of the limited appointments are allowed “to walk over to the American side at the land ports,” notes a report by the Center for Immigration Studies, “where U.S. Customs officials quickly ‘parole’ them in, allowing them to travel to a city of their choice in the nation’s interior.”
In addition, CIS reports, the program also allows potential immigrants to fly directly from foreign airports into the United States.
The White House couches the scheme as an effort to create a more orderly environment at the border. If so, why the secrecy? The program’s efficacy is also in question, as illegal migrant crossings reached a record high in December. Why wait for an appointment when you can cross the border, claim asylum and still be released into the country with a notice to appear in court years down the road?
Mark Morgan, former head of Customs and Border Protection, told The National Desk last week that it’s all about the administration’s “shell game” and covering up “bad political optics.” According to Todd Bensman, who authored the CIS report, “migrants flying directly into America go uncounted in the monthly Border Patrol tallies, unnoticed and without media inquiry, virtually all information about it almost hermetically sealed.”
President Joe Biden acknowledged a crisis at the border only when it became a political liability. The fact that he shirks responsibility for the mess reveals the chaos is hardly accidental.