Republicans in the House and Senate, and even former President Donald Trump, are not backing down in their calls to fix the self-inflicted border crisis that got a turbo boost shortly after the start of the Biden administration.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) led a congressional delegation to El Paso, Texas to highlight the negative effects of the Biden administration incentivizing human trafficking by reinstating catch-and-release and doing away with the Migrant Protection Protocols, also known as the "Remain in Mexico" policy.
What's happening at the border is more than a crisis. This is human heartbreak.
— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) March 15, 2021
And it was created by the policies of President Biden. pic.twitter.com/PNUUoXy6NZ
There are more border trips from members of Congress in the works. Texas Sens. Ted Cruz (R) and John Cornyn (R) will be traveling to the Rio Grande Valley later this month. The tour will include a roundtable with local stakeholders to highlight the impact the massive surge has had on their community.
Shortly after the senators' trip, Reps. Jodey Arrington and Brian Babin will be leading a Texas GOP congressional delegation to the border, where they will be touring the Rio Grande Valley and Laredo Sectors to assess the crisis. Over a dozen members of Congress will be part of the trip, along with Mark Morgan, former acting commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and Tom Homan, former acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
"The fact of the matter is...border wall construction was halted, 'Remain in Mexico' policy was ended, coordination with northern triangle countries was ended. These policies, the rhetoric, the lack of strong stance on border security [from the Biden administration] have directly resulted in this surge," Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX) told Townhall.
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Pfluger recently visited a holding facility for unaccompanied minors in his district in Midland, where he said there has been a lack of respect from the federal agencies in charge of the facility towards his community.
"Zero coordination ahead of time and no communication. Literally in the cover of darkness, they bring up a facility with an extreme lack of respect and transparency," he said, noting the facility is intended as housing for working adults, not minors.
"The lack of transparency I saw in my community is just the tip of the iceberg of lack of transparency in general," Pfluger added.
There is essentially a media blackout put in place by the Biden administration on tours of the holding facilities and ride-alongs with Border Patrol, along with radio silence when reaching out through official channels.
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