Border Patrol chiefs from nine sectors along the US-Mexico border have warned a House committee of an “unprecedented” number of illegal immigration crossings occurring in 2023 – and the threat they pose to the safety of Americans and immigrants themselves.
Depositions taken by the House Homeland Security Committee showed veteran officials differed in their assessment of the cause of the historic border surge — but agreed both on humanitarian dangers and national security concerns, according to transcripts of their statements reviewed by The Post.
“I did not expect to see such a number. It’s unprecedented in the Big Bend Sector,” Chief Patrol Agent Sean McGoffin said of his Texas territory in an April 25 interview.
“It’s certainly unprecedented to see a surge or surge,” Deputy Chief Patrol Agent Dustin Caudle of Arizona’s Yuma Sector told a House panel on Sept. 28. “The amount we’ve seen recently, in my opinion, in my career [what] I have seen things that I thought had never happened before.”
Border Patrol chiefs in nine sectors that fall along the US-Mexico border have testified to a House committee about the “unprecedented” migrant crossings that will occur in 2023. Getty Images Tucson Sector Patrol Chief Agent John Modlin said the increase has ” demoralizing” to him and his agents who are fighting “to keep the border as secure” as they can.Getty Images
“Tucson, because of the incredible amount of heat out there, the summer months tend to be very low,” Chief Patrol Agent John Modlin testified July 26 of his sector in Arizona. “What’s happening now – that’s unheard of.”
“I looked at 10 years of data on what summer months should be,” he added. “[W]e should have about 17,000 concerns in July, you know, given 10 years of aggregated data. Instead we are at 26,000. So this year, the most dangerous time of the year, is seeing one of the most significant trends we’ve ever seen.”
Modlin said the escalation had “demoralized” him and his agents, who he said were fighting “to keep the border as secure” as possible.
San Diego Sector Chief Patrol Agent Aaron Heitke added that the unprecedented number of immigrant crossings threatens the safety of Americans as well as illegal aliens. Sandy Huffaker
Some of the interviews took place before the end of Title 42, the pandemic-era health policy that allows expedited deportations, but chiefs expect fiscal year 2023 border crossings to surpass the record set the previous year.
Chief Jason Owens, who oversaw the Del Rio Sector in Texas for “most of the last year” before being promoted, said his region “leads the nation day-to-day in terms of apprehensions,” which was “the first year that [encounters] has passed the Rio Grande Valley Sector.”
“At the end of the fiscal year, we ended FY ’22 [Oct. 1, 2021, to Sept. 30, 2022] with just over 480,000 apprehensions and about 200,000 known ‘tourists,'” Owens said, referring to immigrants who enter the country illegally without being caught.
Customs and Border Protection data reveals agents encountered more than 2.4 million immigrants at the southwest border in fiscal year 2023, breaking the all-time high in fiscal year 2022. Twitter / @USBPchiefDRT
“In fiscal year ’21, it was busier than the previous 9 fiscal years combined for the Del Rio Sector,” he told House committee staff during a May 9 deposition.
“This year so far, the Rio Grande Valley Sector, the El Paso Sector and the Tucson Sector are, from day to day, busier than us. That leads to May 11th [when Title 42 ended]and we don’t know what will happen after that.”
Owens added that while migrants have traveled to the US “for economic reasons” since he started the agency in the 1990s, most have been barred from entry and opted for “voluntary return” to Mexico before trying to re-enter.
Border Patrol Chief Jason Owens, who previously led the Del Rio Sector, said “for most of the last year” his Texas region “led the nation day-to-day in terms of apprehension.” Reuters
Many immigrants have been “hopeful” about their path to US citizenship, San Diego Sector Patrol Chief Agent Aaron Heitke told the House Homeland Security Committee during his interview, which he attributed to President Biden’s policies.
But Heitke added that the unprecedented number of immigrant crossings threatens the safety of Americans and poses a risk to illegal aliens.
Customs and Border Protection data revealed agents encountered more than 2.4 million immigrants at the southwest border in fiscal year 2023, surpassing the all-time high of about 2.3 million immigrant encounters set for fiscal year 2022.
Many immigrants have been “hopeful” about their path to US citizenship, Heitke told the House Homeland Security Committee, which he attributed to President Biden’s policy.AP
At least 172 individuals stopped by border agents in the past fiscal year were found to be on the FBI’s terrorism watch list, though little has been disclosed about their cases to Congress, raising concerns from lawmakers.
Crossing the border has also affected federal enforcement capabilities and detention facilities, according to the patrol’s top agent, as well as funding for non-governmental groups that care for immigrants.
Government costs for housing and care nationwide could reach $451 billion annually for detained immigrants and known “tourists” who have entered the US since 2021, according to a House Homeland Security Committee report released earlier this month.
Border crossings have also affected federal enforcement capabilities and detention facilities, according to the patrol’s chief agent, as well as funding for nongovernmental groups.AP
In recent congressional testimony, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas revealed more than 600,000 “fugitives” evaded detection by border agents in fiscal year 2023, claiming that it has been an issue for “decades” and represents “a powerful example of a broken immigration system.” “
Another 900,000 immigrants entered the country legally from the southwest border under humanitarian parole last fiscal year, allowing them to seek asylum.
CBP has rolled out a number of policies to try to speed up the process for asylum seekers, including an expansion to the phone application that emerged under former President Donald Trump as well as a mandate for immigrants to apply for entry in any safe third country they pass through on their way to the US.
CBP has launched several policies to try to speed up the process for asylum seekers.Juan Manuel Blanco/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
When Title 42 ended in May, the Biden administration also launched the Family Expedited Removal Management Program to speed up deportations, but reports indicate the majority of immigrants in the program are still being released to the US while they await adjudication.
The Department of Homeland Security resumed direct repatriation flights for Venezuelans in October, a policy that Mayorkas recently told Congress was a “very powerful example” of the kind of reforms needed.
“The asylum system needs to be reformed from top to bottom,” Mayorkas also stressed.
“The asylum system needs to be reformed from top to bottom,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas insisted in recent congressional testimony.Shutterstock
Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) pressed the Cabinet secretary, asking if the “more immediate consequences” for other “recalcitrant countries” would be “an immediate drop in numbers.
“Things haven’t changed in Venezuela, but they have changed in the way we apply that policy,” Lankford emphasized. “And we’re seeing a dramatic drop in numbers there.”
“Senator, our model is to build a legal route and give consequences to individuals who do not take advantage of that legal route,” Mayorkas replied. “Our ability to deport individuals to their countries of origin when they are not eligible for relief under our laws is critical.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
