Republicans on the House Homeland Security Committee are questioning the Biden administration’s celebration of June’s border numbers, as the ongoing crisis at the southern border remains a contentious issue.
Customs and Border Protection data revealed a drop in migrant encounters in June, with 144,571 encounters compared to higher numbers in previous years.
"You're doing a wonderful job!"
Mayorkas basks in praise from fellow leftist elites as he oversees the worst border crisis on record. 7+ million illegal immigrants have crossed since Biden took office — including 1.4+ million who vanished into the country pic.twitter.com/1c0KruD1Qr
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) July 21, 2023
The Biden administration attributes the decline to measures introduced after Title 42 ended in May, including expanded legal pathways and limiting asylum for those who enter illegally.
Acting CBP Commissioner Troy Miller commended these efforts for driving encounters to their lowest levels in over two years.
DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, after 7+ million illegal immigrants have crossed the border since Biden took office:
"We have to place the level of migration we have experienced in its hemispheric and worldwide context…" pic.twitter.com/uxMAxO8VZE
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) July 21, 2023
However, Republicans argue that the numbers are nothing to celebrate and criticize the broad use of parole by the administration, claiming it goes beyond the “case by case” basis intended by Congress.
Chairman Mark Green accused the administration of using the CBP One App and parole to shift otherwise inadmissible immigrants to ports of entry.
The committee’s fact sheet highlights that the number of migrants encountered at the border for FY 2023 is already at nearly 1.8 million, surpassing the historic numbers seen in FY 2021 and approaching the record-breaking 2.4 million encountered last year.
🚨 NEW: 144,571 illegal immigrants were encountered at the southern border in June.
More than 7 MILLION illegal immigrants have now crossed the border since Biden took office.
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) July 19, 2023
Fox News reports: This week, the committee released a report accusing Mayorkas of an intentional dereliction of duty in his handling of the crisis.
“On top of these failures to uphold the law and fulfill his oath of office, Mayorkas has willfully undermined the sacred foundation of our constitutional republic—the separation of powers. He has rejected his responsibility to enforce the laws passed by Congress, and he has refused to respect rulings by the federal judiciary,” it found.
DHS soon pushed back against the report.
“Secretary Mayorkas is proud to advance the noble mission of the Department, support its extraordinary workforce, and serve the American people,” a DHS spokesperson said on Wednesday. ”The Department will continue to enforce our laws and secure our border, protect the United States from terrorism, and improve our cybersecurity, all while building a safe, orderly, and humane immigration system.
“Instead of pointing fingers and pursuing a baseless impeachment, Congress should work with the Department and pass comprehensive legislation to fix our broken immigration system, which has not been updated in decades,” the spokesperson said.
