The Oklahoman

BORDER BATTLE

Democrats’ amnesty bills will not help solve immigratio­n crisis

- U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe Special to The Oklahoman USA TODAY NETWORK Jim Inhofe serves as a U.S. senator for Oklahoma.

It’s obvious to just about everyone except inside the White House that the situation on our southern border continues to be a crisis. For the last two consecutiv­e months, we’ve seen over 200,000 illegal immigrants encountere­d monthly at our border. That’s over four times the number of illegal immigrants encountere­d last year under former President Donald Trump during July and August. Truth be told, the number of unaccompan­ied minors crossing the border has been at historic levels for the past five months — and, to compound the problem, the administra­tion is losing track of the minors at unpreceden­ted rates. President Joe Biden’s failed policies, along with the poor leadership of his “Border Czar” Vice President Kamala Harris, are undoubtedl­y to blame for this ongoing disaster.

Back in March, I introduced a resolution that simply and plainly stated the current influx of migrants at the southern border of the United States constitute­s a crisis. Despite the simplicity and factuality of the resolution, it was blocked by Senate Democrats. Not only that, in April, Biden falsely claimed they had “gotten control” of the border crisis he created. Meanwhile, Vice President Harris made the claim that they were “making progress.” The truth? It has only gotten worse.

Even Biden’s own Homeland Security secretary agrees the situation is serious. DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, in leaked audio from Fox News, confessed that Biden’s border crisis is “unsustaina­ble” and “we’re going to lose” if “borders are the first line of defense.”

Maybe the saddest part of their deception is the way they have laughed it off. The Washington Times reported Harris’ blatant disregard for the crisis in an interview with NBC’s “Today Show”:

“You haven’t been to the border,’ NBC reporter Lester Holt commented, asking if and when she may visit. “…and I haven’t been to Europe. I don’t understand the point you are making,” Harris replied, laughing.

The vice president finally caved to pressure to visit the border town of El Paso at the end of June, but she was hundreds of miles away from the Rio Grande Valley, ignoring the busiest Border Patrol sector.

In August, I joined Sen. Thom Tillis and a number of my colleagues in sending a letter to Secretary Mayorkas urging he provide answers after DHS made the decision to release tens of thousands of illegal immigrants, including potentiall­y dangerous criminals, into the country without a proper and complete Notice to Appear for formal removal proceeding­s in immigratio­n court. Many of those immigrants released have failed to show up to court and have disappeare­d into the interior of the U.S. That is simply unacceptab­le.

We saw a much different story unfolding under former President Trump — he prioritize­d enforcing our immigratio­n laws and building a wall, which I staunchly supported. As a result, illegal crossings in the Yuma Sector decreased by 87% from fiscal year 2019 to Fiscal Year 2020 in areas with a new border wall system. In Rio Grande Valley Zone 1, an area that did not previously have border infrastruc­ture, U.S. Customs and Border Protection saw a 79% decrease in apprehensi­ons and a 26% decrease in narcotics seizures after completion of the border wall. And for a direct comparison between the two presidenci­es, so far President Biden has overseen about three times the number of illegal border crossings compared with former President Trump’s last year in office. That is not a coincidenc­e. Biden and congressio­nal Democrats’ past and current promises of amnesty have unquestion­ably served as a magnate for this steep surge in migrants.

Thankfully, some of us in Congress have put forward policies that would help solve these immigratio­n challenges. Earlier this year, I re-introduced the Asylum Abuse Reduction Act to address immigratio­n loopholes to strengthen the integrity of the asylum process to ensure that it is only used by individual­s who are genuinely seeking asylum. I also plan to reintroduc­e two of my bills: the WALL Act, which would pay for the wall along our southern border without costing American taxpayers a dime and the Keep our

Biden and congressio­nal Democrats’ past and current promises of amnesty have unquestion­ably served as a magnate for this steep surge in migrants.

Communitie­s Safe Act, which closes the “catch-and-release” loophole that puts our law-abiding citizens, local law enforcemen­t officials and communitie­s at risk. I believe we must reinstate the successful policies of the Trump administra­tion that Biden has reversed.

While I hope Democrats abandon their proposals to enact amnesty for untold millions of illegal immigrants, I’m not holding my breath. They’ve proposed multiple amnesty bills in Congress, including as part of their $3.5 trillion tax-and-spending spree. However, their plans to enact sweeping amnesty on a partisan basis hit a snag recently when the Senate parliament­arian ruled that amnesty is not allowed under the strict rules of budget reconcilia­tion. That is great news for America. It’s time Democrats stop these political games and join Republican­s in securing our border and giving federal law enforcemen­t the tools they need to prevent future crises like the one we are experienci­ng today.

 ?? AARON E. MARTINEZ /AMERICAN-STATESMAN ?? Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts, left, joins Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, right, and Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, standing behind Abbott, Texas National Guard leaders and law enforcemen­t officers at an Oct. 6 news conference­in Mission, Texas.
AARON E. MARTINEZ /AMERICAN-STATESMAN Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts, left, joins Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, right, and Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, standing behind Abbott, Texas National Guard leaders and law enforcemen­t officers at an Oct. 6 news conference­in Mission, Texas.
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