In the News

The Crisis at our Southern Border
by Rep. French Hill
The Saline Courier
October 28, 2021

The Biden Administration revoked President Trump's southwest border policies and replaced them with absolutely nothing. It should come as no surprise that Border Patrol made 1.66 million arrests last fiscal year - the highest number ever recorded. In that same time, around 145,000 unaccompanied children crossed the border into the United States. And, this September, we saw a caravan of 15,000 Haitians camped out along the border. In the impacted border towns, jails have become overcrowded, law enforcement overwhelmed, COVID-19 cases are spiking and local authorities are begging the Biden Administration to close the border.

I took my seventh trip to the Southwest border in April to observe the conditions of the border and surrounding communities first-hand, and it was the worst I had ever seen. Following my trip, I urged President Biden to reinstate Trump-era border policies, including resuming the congressionally authorized border wall construction, the Northern Triangle Agreements, and the "Remain in Mexico" policy. It only took nine months, but President Biden recently announced plans to reinstate Trump's "Remain in Mexico" policy - though we have yet to see any real action. 

"Border Czar" Vice President Harris made her first and only trip to the border at the end of June, nearly three months after Biden delegated her border-related responsibilities. Since her last trip to the border, we have seen several caravans composed of thousands of migrants hoping to make their way across the border into the United States. The Vice President's response to this crisis? Radio silence.

Whereas Vice President Harris has been to the border one time, President Biden has been to the border to view his crisis firsthand zero times. In fact, his Press Secretary Jen Psaki said that Biden once drove through the border during a 2008 campaign trip. Both the President's and Vice President's trips were to El Paso, Texas - a major city hundreds of miles away from the small town of Del Rio, Texas, where we are seeing the crisis today. That's not leadership.

Anyone entering the United States via air or sea transport is required to show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test. Yet, these same requirements do not apply to those who cross the border. Furthermore, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement data, immigration arrests in the United States fell to the lowest levels in more than a decade. The administration's lack of policy at the border encourages migrants to make the dangerous trek to our nation - hurting and burdening our American communities that lack the resources to handle the illegal immigrants flooding our border - and creating a national security and humanitarian crisis in the process.

Americans are rightfully concerned. The Biden Administration has shown us repeatedly where their priorities are - and they are not with Americans living along the southern border. I urge the Biden Administration to sit down with my colleagues, especially with those who represent the communities impacted by this crisis, and work in a bipartisan way to develop policies that protect Americans and secure our borders. Until then, I urge President Biden to consider reinstating the rest of the Trump-era border policies.