In addition to the FIVE ALIEN AMNESTY Bills which the Open Borders Crowd is seeking to Merge, (i.e.create a compromise Bill which contains some provisions from each of the SIX Bills summarized below including from One Good Bill) But it is the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill (see recent CCN Alert) which most reflects their Ultimate Goals.
Passage of these Alien Amnesty Bills would increase costs to taxpayers, increase drug running and child trafficking , increase homelessness, and increase threats to personal safety and public health
WORSE, now we have Biden/Mayorkas advancing Cartel Crime and yet another Bill introduced which would provide taxpayer funded Public Benefits to Illegals!! Help CCN stop these Bills and policies!!
Statement of Jessica M. Vaughan Center for Immigration Studies
Thank you, Mr. Green and Mr. Thompson, for the opportunity to testify today.
The mass migration crisis instigated by the Biden administration’s misguided immigration policies has caused incalculable harm to American communities, to the integrity of our immigration system, and, tragically, to many of the migrants themselves. While there are a number of beneficiaries of these policies, including employers seeking cheap, exploitable workers; NGOs who are awarded huge contracts to provide services to migrants; and politicians who welcome the addition of non-citizen constituents to their districts, to name a
few, the biggest winners under the Biden-Mayorkas policies are the criminal cartels and other transnational criminal organizations who are reaping
profits on a nearly unimaginable scale. Drug trafficking is big business, and
we’ve witnessed an alarming spike in the most dangerous drugs like fentanyl, but reportedly in recent years the cartels actually have been making more money from human smuggling and trafficking than from drugs. The fiscal and
human cost is serious and enormous. Congress should take certain steps to combat the cartels specifically, but the most effective action would be to address the main cause of the problem – the array of policies, unauthorized entry programs, and legal loopholes that generate the most profitable customers for the cartels – illegal migrants.
Biden-Mayorkas Policies Set Off Flood of Illegal Migrants; Millions Released into the United States. When he took office, President Biden inherited what many experts considered to be the most secure land borders in U.S. history, with expanded and improved barriers, updated technology, and more personnel, all of which was backed up by policies that deterred migrants from crossing illegally. Yet on his very first day, President Biden began dismantling these policies and activities that had largely succeeded in controlling recent waves of illegal migrants.
Within a short time, on the watch of DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, that largely secure southern border was transformed into a chaotic, lawless, and dangerous frontier, with cartels and criminal smuggling organizations orchestrating illegal crossings of migrants with impunity. The incentive: the understanding that the vast majority of illegal migrants would promptly be released from government custody and transported to their destination (often with government funds), despite low expectations that the migrants will comply with immigration proceedings or ever qualify to remain legally.
The Biden-Mayorkas policies, are built on the concept of increasing immigration by “managing” a much higher level of illegal migration and laundering the unauthorized entries using parole and work permit-issuing authority, together with the near suspension of interior enforcement. The result is a system that is outrageously lucrative for the cartels and the smugglers, traffickers, gangs, and other criminal enterprises involved.
Specifically, the Biden administration has arranged it so that the majority of those who do business with the smuggling organizations, which necessarily work under arrangements with the cartels who control the border area, will succeed in gaining entry to the United States with the opportunity to live and work here for an indefinite period, without a meaningful threat of removal. Under these policies, there is a near endless supply of paying customers willing to risk working with criminal organizations to seek passage to the border. These policies include:
1. Terminating construction of physical barriers at the border, and suspending operation of other tactics that were effective in deterring illegal entry, such as checkpoints and certain technology-based detection systems.
2. Directing the Border Patrol to coordinate with Mexican authorities to permit groups of migrants to cross the border illegally.
3. Directing the Border Patrol to undermine the border security enhancements installed by Texas authorities.
4. Allowing inadmissible migrants to make appointments to be escorted through the ports of entry for processing and release into the United States. Those arriving without appointments may withdraw their applications and subsequently enter with an appointment.
5. Virtually guaranteed release of families, minors traveling without parents, and those claiming to be a family or minor. These categories of illegal migrants, now represent 30 percent of the current border apprehensions. Little to no vetting is done to verify claimed family relationships (DNA testing was recently suspended). Typically, after processing the migrants are turned over to contractors who provide shelter and arrange transportation to their destination, where they are told to check in with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to receive an immigration court date. Intake agencies are prohibited from sharing information on the minors with ICE, and ICE is prohibited from moving to deport anyone who sponsors a minor.
6. Unaccompanied minors are handed off to the Department of Health and Human Services, which will house them until a sponsor is located. Most are released to individuals claiming to be parents or other relatives, while others are released to lightly-vetted sponsors. Home studies, background checks, and financial assessments are rare, and little meaningful follow-up monitoring is done. The expectation is that any problems will be handled by state and local authorities.
7. Migrants are encouraged to comply with immigration proceedings in order to receive a work permit. This benefit may also lead to qualifying for additional services, including a driver’s license. Their conduct is only lightly monitored to remain in compliance with the terms of their release.
8. Migrants who do not comply with the conditions of their release are not considered targets for immigration enforcement. Only those migrants who commit very serious crimes and serve out their sentences are considered for removal, and only if the crimes occurred recently and no other mitigating circumstances are presented. Tens of thousands of migrants who absconded from proceedings in the past, or whose cases are now considered low priority have been closed, eliminating any threat of removal.
9. Besides giving a pass to illegal migrants who don’t comply with release conditions, Mayorkas has directed ICE to refrain generally from investigating employers who hire unauthorized workers and from attempting to detect illegal workers who are using stolen or false identities.
As Border Crossings Rise, So Do Cartel Profits. Not surprisingly, the number of illegal border crossers and inadmissible migrants has exploded, in response to what the migrants call Biden’s “invitacion.” This has been a boon for the cartel profits; in the last two years, reportedly, the cartels have reaped more revenue from the human smuggling and trafficking business than they have from drug trafficking, and have accumulated more wealth than some entire states in Mexico, reaching sums of as much as $14 billion a year, according to some experts.
1 Todd Bensman, Biden DHS Coordinating Illegal Immigration In-Flows with Mexico (cis.org), Center for Immigration Studies, May 10, 2023.
2 Todd Bensman, Dispatch from a Militarized Texas Farm – Where Biden’s Federal Agents Are Sabotaging the State’s Desperate Border Enforcement (cis.org), Center for Immigration Studies, July 13, 2023.
3 Border Patrol encounters of illegal migrants at the border have consistently breached two million each year since 2021, and as of May of this year, are already over 2.1 million. While the number of encounters measures attempted illegal crossings, the more important metric in the context of this discussion is the number of inadmissible aliens who are being released into the country.
These are the cartel success stories, and consist of three categories of unauthorized migrants:
1. Illegal border crossers released after apprehension – Under Biden-Mayorkas policies, since January 2021 more than 2.2 million inadmissible aliens have been released into the country after turning themselves over to the Border Patrol or after apprehension.3 This massive catch and release program is operating in defiance of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which requires the government to return, remove or detain all illegal border crossers, including those express an intent to make an asylum claim.4
2. “Gotaways” – Prior to the implementation of Biden-Mayorkas policies, typically the number of aliens evading apprehension by the Border Patrol remained just over 100,000 per year. Beginning in 2021, that figure rose to nearly 400,000 “gotaways,” and then nearly 600,000 in 2022. So far in 2023, reportedly 530,000 illegal aliens have evaded capture, for a total of at least 1.5 million “gotaways” entering under the Biden administration.
3. Unauthorized parole programs – In an attempt to lessen scenes of chaos at the southern land border, Mayorkas recently launched a controversial program to funnel inadmissible migrants to land and air ports of entry and away from illegal land crossings. Migrants make an appointment in advance using a phone app known as CBP One, and are allowed to enter through the land ports on the day of their appointment. In addition, those who show up at legal crossings without a visa and without a CBP One appointment are allowed to withdraw and enter later using the app to make an appointment, usually bypassing the waiting lists, which can be as long as five weeks for other users. Initially set at 1,000 per day on May 12 (following the rescission of Title 42), now there are 1,450 appointments available every day at the land ports. In addition, according to our sources, every day more than 1,000 additional migrants who are citizens of Cuba, Haiti, Venezuela, and Nicaragua reportedly are being permitted to fly directly to certain U.S. airports, where immigration officials allow entry without a visa. The estimated total number of unauthorized parolees is 250,000 since January. New Policies Fail to Make Illegal Migration Safer. Biden officials have claimed that the policies and programs implemented after the termination of pandemic expulsions have created new “legal” pathways for migrants so that they do not need to do business with the cartels. In remarks at a meeting with Mexico’s President Lopez Obrador and Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Biden said: People have to make it through jungles and a long journey to the border. And many are victimized, not only in terms of what they have to pay but victimized physically in other ways. And so, we’re trying to make it easier for people to get here, opening up the capacity to get here, but not have them go through that godawful process.
3 Andrew R. Arthur, Decoding CBP’s Southwest Border Statistics for May (cis.org), Center for Immigration Studies, June 26, 2023.
4 See Hillel R. Smith, “The Law of Immigration Detention,” Congressional Research Service, updated September 1, 2022, IF11343 (congress.gov) and Andrew R. Arthur, DHS Can’t Just Release Illegal Migrants at the Border (cis.org), Center for Immigration Studies, October 22, 2021,.
5 Andrew R. Arthur, ‘Got-Away’ Tsunami Is the Best Measure of the Decline in Border Security Under Biden (cis.org), Center for Immigration Studies, June 29, 2023.
6 Joseph R. Biden, Remarks by President Biden, Prime Minister Trudeau, and President López Obrador in Joint Press Conference | The White House, January 10, 2023.
Biden officials now claim (without releasing the official statistics to confirm) that illegal crossings have declined by 50 percent or more in the last month. However, there are reasons to be skeptical that the new programs actually have solved the border problems.
Jayapal, Hirono, Cárdenas Introduce Bicameral Legislation to Expand Public Benefits to Immigrants. House of Representatives, June 15, 2023.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Representatives Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) and Tony
Cárdenas (CA-29) and U.S. Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) are leading lawmakers in both chambers in introducing legislation to remove harmful barriers to federal public benefits for immigrants. The Lifting Immigrant Families Through Benefits Access Restoration (LIFT the BAR) Act eliminates the current five-year waiting period for access to Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program. This will restore access to critical aid for Green Card holders, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients, individuals granted Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), and other lawfully present immigrants.
“As an immigrant who came to this country alone at the age of 16, I’m proud to be leading this legislation to finally eliminate cruel, xenophobic, and unreasonable barriers to health care, nutrition assistance, and other life-changing public benefits,” said Jayapal. “Immigrants and families should not have to wait to access these basic services. The LIFT the BAR Act is an urgent, necessary, and just step towards ensuring we treat immigrants with the respect they deserve.”
“Immigrants play integral roles in our communities and should not have to endure an arbitrary waiting period just to access essential benefits,” said Senator Hirono. “For more than 25 years, unjust policies have prevented millions of lawfully present immigrants from accessing critical services and programs, including quality health care, food and housing assistance, economic support, and more. As we work to support immigrant communities in Hawaii and across the country, the LIFT the BAR Act will eliminate harmful barriers and allow immigrants and their families to lead healthier, safer, and more secure lives.”
“Growing up in an immigrant family, I saw firsthand how important access to public benefits was,” said Congressman Cárdenas. “Families that are working toward a better life here in America should not have to wait five years to access resources they need to survive and thrive. Our legislation will eliminate the unnecessary waiting period for lifesaving aid and ensure our immigrant communities have the financial stability for a better future.”
In 1996, Congress passed restrictive legislation that created an arbitrary five-year waiting period for immigrants with lawful status to access critical benefits and services. Due in part to these restrictions, immigrants are significantly more likely to be uninsured, placing them at a higher risk for adverse health and financial consequences. n 2024, non-elderly immigrants will account for an estimated 8 percent of the population yet make up 31 percent of the non-elderly uninsured population.
“Every year, the five-year bar denies millions of families, especially families of color, the basics every family should have. Passing the LIFT the BAR Act is an essential step toward race equity, and a quarter-century is more than long enough to wait for justice. House Democrats must make this bill a priority in 2023,” said Adriana Cadena, Director, Protecting Immigrant Families.
“All of us, regardless of our immigration status, should have access to the basic tools and supports we need to be successful and productive. We are proud to support the LIFT the Bar Act, which would address an injustice that has unfairly kept tax-paying families across America from accessing critical care and assistance. Removing arbitrary barriers to health, nutritional support, housing assistance, and other important public programs would bring us closer to a society in which all of us have the freedom to thrive. We thank Reps. Jayapal and Cárdenas for their leadership in introducing LIFT the Bar, and we call on Congress to swiftly pass this commonsense policy,” said Kica Matos, President, National Immigration Law Center.
“No one should be denied access to vital medical care, food, housing, or basic income support due to their immigration status. The LIFT the BAR Act works to address exclusionary policies and ensure immigrant families have access to the supports they need to access this country’s opportunities and contribute to our nation,” said Indivar Dutta Gupta, president and executive director for the Center for Law and Social Policy. “CLASP is grateful to Representatives Jayapal and Cárdenas and Senator Hirono for their leadership in making our systems of support more equitable and effective. Immigrants are deeply integrated into this nation’s fabric. Harming immigrants harms us all.”
The LIFT the BAR Act is sponsored in the House of Representatives by Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), Tony Cárdenas (CA-29), Alma Adams (NC-12), Jake Auchincloss (MA-04), Nanette Diaz Barragan (CA-44), Don Beyer (VA-08), Earl Blumenauer (OR-03), Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), Jamaal Bowman (NY-16), Salud Carbajal (CA-24), Andre Carson (IN-07), Greg Casar (TX-35), Sean Casten (IL-06), Kathy Castor (FL-14), Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Sheila
Cherfilus-McCormick (FL-20), Judy Chu (CA-28), Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09), Emmanual Cleaver, II (MO-05), Steve Cohen (TN-09), Gerald E. Connolly (VA-11), J. Luis Correa (CA-46), Jason Crow (CO-06), Madeleine Dean (PA-04), Diana DeGette (CO-01), Suzan DelBene (WA-01), Mark DeSaulnier (CA-10), Lloyd Doggett (TX-37), Veronica Escobar (TX-16), Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), Dwight Evans (PA-03), Valerie Foushee (NC-04), Lois Frankel (FL-22), Ruben Gallego (AZ-03), Robert Garcia (CA-42), Jesús “Chuy” García (IL-04), Sylvia Garcia (TX-29),Jimmy Gomez (CA-34), Raul Grijalva (AZ-07), Jahana Hayes (CT-05), Jared Huffman (CA-02), Glenn Ivey (MD-04), Sara Jacobs (CA-51), Henry C. “Hank” Johnson, Jr. (GA-04), Sydney Kamlager-Dove (CA-37), Robin Kelly (IL-02), Ro Khanna (CA-17), Derek Kilmer (WA-06), Barbara Lee (CA-13), Summer Lee (PA-12), Ted Lieu (CA-36), Zoe Lofgren (CA-18), James P. McGovern (MA-02), Rob Menendez (NJ-08), Grace Meng (NY-06), Gwen Moore (WI-04), Seth Moulton (MA-06), Kevin Mullin (CA-15), Jerrold Nadler (NY-12), Grace Napolitano (CA-31), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC-At Large), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Jimmy Panetta (CA-19), Bill Pascrell (NJ-09), Donald M. Payne (NJ-10), Scott H. Peters (CA-50), Dean Phillips (MN-03), Chellie Pingree (ME-01), Mark Pocan (WI-02), Katie Porter (CA-47), Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), Mike Quigley (IL-06), Delia Ramirez (IL-03), Jamie Raskin (MD-08), Andrea Salinas (OR-06), Linda Sanchez (CA-38), Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05), Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), Adam B. Schiff (CA-30), Terri A. Sewell (AL-07), Brad Sherman (CA-32), Adam Smith (WA-09), Darren Soto (FL-09), Melanie Stansbury (NM-01), Eric Swalwell (CA-14), Mark Takano (CA-39), Shri Thanedar (MI-13), Dina Titus (NV-01), Rashida Tlaib (MI-12), Jill Tokuda (HI-02), Ritchie Torres (NY-15), Norma Torres (CA-35), Lori Trahan (MA-03), David Trone (MD-06), Juan Vargas (CA-52), Marc Veasey (TX-33), Nydia Velazquez (NY-07), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-25), Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12), Nikema Williams (GA-05), and Frederica S. Wilson (FL-24).
In sum the Future of our Nation is at stake!! —-
Contact your Representative and Senators NOW. Insist they commit to Opposing any Illegal Alien Amnesty and to providing any taxpayer-funded benefits to Illegals!!!!! AND support a zero-Net MORATORIUM on Legal Immigration (which would still allow 150,000 settlers a year)
And Most Important to Note ONLY pushing CCN’s all-categories-included zero Net MORATORIUM on Legal Immigration MAXIMIZES the chances of stopping this Horrendous Mass Alien Amnesty Bill which would also double Legal Immigration. Pushing any less restrictive number, as the two National Mass Immigration Management Groups do, will likely result in a Compromise Bill reducing the numbers by just a few thousand at most….. a totally unacceptable result.
Indeed, since those two National Mass Immigration Management groups refuse to support ANY Moratorium Bill (like Rep. Gosar’s e.g.) THEY ARE DE FACTO ENABLERS OF CONTINUING MASS IMMIGRATION!!
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