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The United States Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas, revealed that the immigration crisis on the southern border is “tightening our system” for which he was encouraged to make a called on the administration so that Congress pass an immigration bill that includes an amnesty for millions of people who are seeking asylum.
It was during an interview with The Washington Post that Mayorkas pointed out that the number of immigrants that the Office of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is dealing with is exerting a Significant pressure on the United States immigration system “There is no question that the number of encounters we are experiencing at the border is testing our system.”
He also accepted that the immigration system is broken. “No one disagrees with that. It just seems like we can’t agree on the solution. And a solution is long overdue. Within the broken immigration system that we are operating, we are managing the number of encounters and we are prepared to address the end of Title 42. We have been preparing for this since well beyond last year.”
Fiscal year 2021 saw a record number of 1.7 million migrant encounters, which was later surpassed in fiscal year 2022 when the numbers reached 2.3 million. Until now, fiscal year 2023, which began in October, is on track to surpass fiscal year 2022 numbers.
The border crisis became more acute after the imminent end of Title 42. Weeks ago the Biden administration tried to end the health policy that was born under the Trump era, but was blocked by a Republican legal challenge. So a federal judge ruled last November that the use of the warrant was illegal and ordered it rescinded Dec. 21, but it was blocked by the Supreme Court in response to an emergency request from red states.
DHS has outlined a six-point plan to deal with the end of Title 42, which includes increased resources for the border, greater cooperation in the Western Hemisphere, more campaigns against smuggling, and greater use of alternative forms of removal. But it has also forecast up to 14,000 migrant encounters a day once the order falls. In the meantime, Mayorkas has repeatedly stated that the border is “safe”, a claim that has drawn the ire of Republicans, some of whom have called for him to be impeached.
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