Biden’s DHS Secretary says a “terrific solution” to immigration surge was killed by “irresponsible politics”
Washington — Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas Nearing the end of his tenure at the helm of the nation’s immigration enforcement, he said “a truly remarkable solution was killed by irresponsible politics” when a bipartisan border deal collapsed earlier this year.
Mayorkas pointed out border package deal The deal, reached in February after months of deliberations by a bipartisan Senate negotiating team, would mark the first comprehensive overhaul of border security policy in decades and give the president far-reaching powers to crack down on illegal border crossings. But the bill is was quickly rejected Republicans advanced the proposal after President-elect Donald Trump expressed opposition.
After that legislation failed, the Biden administration enacted asylum restrictions that sharply cut off the flow of migrants. Asked about criticism from Republicans that the Biden administration has the power to take action on the border without Congress, Mayorkas acknowledged that the administration might have acted more quickly if they had known the border deal would be undermined.
Mayorkas said in an interview: “In hindsight, if we had known in 2020 that irresponsible politics could stifle what was clearly a meritorious effort and meritorious results, maybe we would have taken executive action sooner. “Facing the Nation with Margaret Brennan.” “
These comments come after the number of border crossings dropped to Lowest level of Biden administrationafter reaching an all-time high a year ago.
The homeland security secretary noted that global “migration trend lines” were growing exponentially in 2018 and 2019, before Mr. Biden took office, “and then the COVID-19 pandemic hit.” He added that the Biden administration has built capacity over time that allows it to transport people and ease pressure in areas experiencing surges in migrants, saying “across the government, we have been conducting enforcement at unprecedented levels.”
“We are now evacuating or repatriating more people in three years than the previous administration was able to evacuate or repatriate in four years, and we’re not only doing it in greater numbers, but we’re doing it faster because we’re working with other countries and more people than we’ve ever done before. That’s the case with more countries negotiating,” Mayorkas said.
