Texas Border Wire Case Is Far From Over

Battle between Texas & Federal Government

But temporary decision is really just the beginning of the court fight Washington, D.C. (January 25, 2024) – A Center for Immigration Studies analysis highlights this week's Supreme Court order vacating an injunction imposed by the Fifth Circuit in DHS v. Texas. The case, brought by the state of Texas, sought to stop Biden's CBP from destroying portions of a 29-mile section of concertina-wire ("c-wire") barriers erected by the state along the Rio Grande to deter illegal migrants. Two of the Court's conservatives — Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett — joined the three liberal justices in that decision, but their order hardly settles the matter. In fact, given the unresolved factual and legal issues in this case, it's really just begun. "Texas's legal effort to stop Biden's CBP from destroying its property is far from over," said Andrew Arthur, the Center's fellow in law and policy and author of the analysis. "It will now go back to the Fifth Circuit to address Texas's legal arguments in full." This conflict over whether the federal government or Texas is responsible for the enforcement of the border began in March 2021, when Texas Gov. Greg Abbott launched "Operation Lone Star," a state effort to respond to the massive wave of migrants pouring across the border unleashed by Joe Biden's reversal of his predecessor's successful border deterrence policies. Under the initiative, Texas deployed state troopers and National Guard troops to monitor and respond to illegal border crossings. It came to a head with the end of Title 42 on May 11, when the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) and Texas Military Department (TMD) began installing concertina wire barriers on the Texas side of the river to prevent smugglers and illegal entrants from crossing into populated areas where they could disappear before arrest. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) was apparently grateful for the help, except along 29 miles of the border in Maverick County, where agents began removing the c-wire in September, encouraging migrants to enter the country. The case has been making its way through the courts ever since. Texas State Attorney General Ken Paxton issued a statement in response to the SCOTUS ruling, characterizing the Court's order as "temporary" and stating, "The destruction of Texas's border barriers will not help enforce the law or keep American citizens safe. This fight is not over, and I look forward to defending our state's sovereignty." Arthur commented, "There are a lot of news cameras on the border; every time CBP rips out that wire, it will be seen by the public, and show voters how little interest the Biden administration has in enforcing the law."

New from the Center for Immigration Studies, 1/30/24

Report Immigration-Related Regulatory Proposals Expected in 2024 By Elizabeth Jacobs, January 24, 2024 Excerpt: As we enter the fourth year of the Biden administration, CIS expects immigration policy-makers to continue their aggressive regulatory agenda. This report discusses the regulatory changes that the Biden administration has indicated it intends to make in 2024 related to the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Justice, Department of Labor, and Department of Health and Human Services.  Commentary Biden's Border Chutzpah By Mark Krikorian Compact, January 29, 2024 Excerpt: But before addressing the shortcomings of a possible deal, we need to step back and ask a more basic question: Why does Congress need to act at all? The border crisis is entirely President Biden's doing. It is an executive problem, not a legislative one, and requires a change in the administration's policies, not new laws. More Biden Recklessness: Bombing Houthi Jihadists While Keeping Our Borders Wide Open By Philip Linderman The American Conservative, January 23, 2024 Excerpt: More than two decades after 9/11, the Washington national-security establishment is again focused on our overseas posture rather than the homeland. The Road from Damascus By Todd Bensman The American Mind, January 22, 2024 Excerpt: Syrians pose an overlooked security threat for Europe, one worth American attention too: 538 of them were counted at the U.S.-Mexico border, which is facing its own historically unprecedented mass migration crisis. Will Mass Migration Breach Poland's Famous Border Fence? By Todd Bensman The National Interest, January 19, 2024 Excerpt: A recent shift from the political Right to Left in Poland's national government now threatens those two-plus years of tranquility in Kuznica and all along Poland's now-famed steel fence—widely credited as emblematic of how walls stop illegal immigration.   Podcast Panel Podcast: Asylum in the U.S. and Europe Host: Mark Krikorian Guests: Viktor Marsai, Director of the Budapest-based Migration Research Institute Nicolas Pouvreau-Monti, Co-founder of the Immigration and Demography Observatory in France Eric Ruark, Director of Research at NumbersUSA Parsing Immigration Policy, Episode 139 Featured Posts Immigration Tops Voters' Concerns in Latest Poll, as Approval of President's Handling Plummets By Andrew R. Arthur Excerpt: For the first time in my recollection, "immigration" now tops the list of the most important issues facing the country today in the opinion of voters, jumping seven points in a month and overtaking "inflation", according to the latest Harvard/Harris poll. Don't Believe the Hype — Securing the Border's Not That Hard By Andrew R. Arthur Excerpt: The price tag for detention would be high at first, but those costs would diminish quickly once would-be migrants find out illegal entry is no longer a "free ticket" into the United States. UN Budgets Millions for U.S.-Bound Migrants in 2024 By Todd Bensman Excerpt: A December update to the UN's "Regional Refugee and Migrant Response Plan" outlines plans to distribute hundreds of millions of dollars to migrants in Latin America making their way north to illegally cross the U.S. border. During Human Trafficking Prevention Month, CIS Sues HHS for UAC Records By Colin Farnsworth Excerpt: Many aspects of Unaccompanied Children program have been shrouded in secrecy, leaving state and local officials unaware of potential problems within their jurisdictions, and shielding HHS and its contractors from accountability. More Blog Posts Bizarre Conspiracy: Aliens Claim Green Cards Because They'd Been Abused by Their Citizen Children Senate Border Proposals Would Do Nothing to Secure the Border Texas Gov. Sends Border Warning to White House Recent Immigration Could Not Have Reduced Inflation Significantly CBP Border Numbers Released: December Was Officially the Worst Month in History The Latest Development in the Long-Running Mayorkas/Edwards Feud Andrew R. Arthur, resident fellow in law and policy for the Center, speaks with LiveNOW from FOX about SCOTUS' decision to allow Border Patrol agents to cut concertina wire that Texas had installed along the border near Eagle Pass.

PODCAST: Work Authorization Expansion

Attracts and Embeds Illegal Immigration Population in U.S. Society

Follow Parsing Immigration Policy YouTube, Ricochet, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts   Washington, D.C. (September 28, 2023) – In this week's podcast, the Center for Immigration Studies highlights the expansion of work authorization for newly arrived migrants and those who have entered the country illegally.  Work permits are an often-ignored part of the discussion on immigration policy but are a major pull factor for immigrants looking to come to the United States illegally.   In this episode of Parsing Immigration Policy, Elizabeth Jacobs, the Center's Director of Regulatory Affairs and Policy, explains the importance of Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) and sheds light on how the Biden administration has exploited loopholes in immigration law to prioritize the issuances of EADs to migrants over visa holders.   Jacobs also breaks down the recent Biden administration reforms which are aimed to expand work authorization eligibility even further, strengthening the job magnet that attracts illegal immigration. DHS has announced it will:   start issuing EADs to migrants who are paroled into the United States that will be valid for five years, a three-year increase to current policy; renew the Temporary Protective Status (TPS) of Venezuelan nationals who arrived by March 8, 2021; extend TPS eligibility to Venezuelan migrants who arrived by July, 31, 2023 (an estimated 472,000 will be newly eligible, potentially bringing the population to over 700,000 individuals); accelerate applications for work permits filed by parolees who scheduled their entry through the CBP One app starting October 1, 2023. They will be prioritized over other categories, raising serious questions of policy and fairness.   Mark Krikorian, the Center's Executive Director and host of the podcast, points out, "Work permits root individuals into American society in a way that working illegally does not. It provides access to Social Security numbers and driver's licenses, serving as a significant step toward a full amnesty. The Biden administration's large-scale expansion of work authorization for those who enter the country illegally deserves more attention from the media and Congress."

CBP’s August Numbers Reveal Alarming Border Crisis

Massive Surge in Family and Child Migrants Overwhelms Agents

CBP's August Numbers Reveal Alarming Border Crisis: Massive Surge in Family and Child Migrants Overwhelms Agents Washington, D.C. (September 29, 2023) – The Center for Immigration Studies' analysis of CBP's August border statistics reveals a border in freefall, with all historical records for monthly encounters nationwide being surpassed. The article, authored by Andrew Arthur, the Center's fellow in law and policy, analyzes the Biden administration policies that have created the crisis. CBP's "encounters" metric, which includes both apprehensions and inadmissible applicants, reached unprecedented levels in August, totaling 304,162. This surge includes a massive influx of adults entering illegally with children and unaccompanied alien children, presenting significant challenges for Border Patrol agents. Of particular concern is the sharp rise in encounters at Southwest border ports, with nearly 52,000 inadmissible applicants encountered in August. This is a 132-percent increase over CBP encounters at the Southwest ports in August 2022 (itself a 67-percent increase over August 2021). The surge can be attributed to the Biden administration's controversial "CBP One app interview scheme," which allows migrants to preschedule their illegal entries, contributing to the chaos at the ports of entry. Moreover, the administration's illegal and flawed use of parole, such as the CHNV Parole Processes the White House announced in January, have allowed thousands of inadmissible aliens, mostly from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, to enter the United States. Thanks to disclosures the Center received under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) we now know that about 99.7 percent of the aliens paroled into the country under the CHNV Parole Processes have been allowed to enter, which calls into question how vigorous DHS's vetting has been. Arthur points out that "not only is CHNV parole facially illegal (20 states are suing the Biden administration in federal court in Texas to shut it down), but it is also 'Ripe for Human Exploitation' by human traffickers and unscrupulous employers." The border crisis has devolved into a nightmare for law enforcement, with an overwhelming number of family units and unaccompanied children requiring specialized care and extensive processing time. On average, agents require 78.5 hours to simply do the paperwork on those migrants. Consequently, few Border Patrol agents are actually patrolling the border, creating opportunities for smugglers and criminal cartels. This escalation is due to a loophole the Biden administration created for family units when it (mildly) beefed up the asylum rules to slow the border flow. Those rules also included a carve-out for unaccompanied alien kids, which explains why Border Patrol's Southwest border UAC apprehension numbers soared in August, as well. Last month, agents encountered more than 13,500 alien minors travelling alone. Arthur concludes, "CBP's nationwide August alien encounter numbers are the worst in history in every possible way — total encounters, Southwest port encounters, Border Patrol family apprehensions — with increasing numbers of kids showing up alone, widening gaps for cartel exploitation, and the White House's responses all failing. All thanks to President Joe Biden." Donate

New from the Center for Immigration Studies, 8/22/22

Share Tweet Share Podcast States Can Push Back on Biden Open Border Policies Host: Jessica Vaughan  Guest:  Dan Cadman Parsing Immigration Policy, Episode 67 Commentary  How Selfies Fuel Rise in Illegal Migrants By Todd Bensman New York Post, August 19, 2022 Excerpt: Smart-phone technology is a massive driver of migration, sending the message to Central and South America of "wish you were here." Team Biden's Politicized Plan for Federal Sanctuary Will Mean Dangerous Criminals on the Streets By Dan Cadman New York Post, August 19, 2022 Excerpt: The US Marshals Service, under Attorney General Merrick Garland, is drafting a policy change directing its field offices, marshals, deputies and detention centers to cease honoring immigration detainers filed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Most illegal immigrants do not qualify for US asylum By Andrew Arthur New York Post, August 16, 2022 Excerpt: Under US law, most migrants coming here without permission must be expelled. The only exceptions are migrants fleeing torture or racial, religious, ethnic, political or social-group persecution. "Economic refugee" is a contradiction, and "seeking a better life" means nothing if a migrant lacks permission to enter. Featured Blog Posts Border Patrol Has Already Set a New Yearly Apprehension Record at the Southwest Border By Andrew R. Arthur Late on the afternoon of August 15, CBP released its latest statistics on migrant encounters at the Southwest border. In July, the agency encountered nearly 200,000 aliens at the U.S.-Mexico line, including 181,500-plus illegal migrants who were apprehended by Border Patrol there.  Is USCIS Prioritizing Work Authorization for Many Border Crossers Over Visa Holders? By Elizabeth Jacobs Despite the crisis-level backlogs facing agency operations, USCIS's new online platform may permit inadmissible aliens who have illegally entered to receive their work permits ahead of applicants for many work-eligible visa categories. More Illegals by Sea, but Many More by Land By David North Illegal aliens, by and large, are not swimmers, as we learn from time to time when they are either drowned (or rescued by the Border Patrol) as they seek to cross either the Rio Grande or some canals at various parts of the southern border. Court Rules that NEPA Lawsuit Can Proceed By Julie Axelrod Now that most of the claims have survived a motion to dismiss, the case will proceed to litigate the merits of whether the Biden administration's actions on immigration have had significant environmental impacts.   More Blog Posts NPR Falsely Claims High Immigrant Welfare Use is a Myth NPR/Ipsos Poll: Majority of Americans Believe There's an 'Invasion' at the Southwest Border "H-1B dependent employers" Lose Millions in Federal Claims Court Ninth Circuit Dissent Explains Everything Wrong with Criminal Alien Removal Readers: We Are in Search of Information You Have that We Need Donate