President Joe Biden laid out a new plan from his administration to reduce the number of recorded illegal crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border, which have reached all-time highs during the first two years of his administration.
Speaking at the White House on Thursday, Biden conceded his plan will not completely solve the issues at the southern border but it will be a step in the right direction. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will start processing Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Cubans through an app to make appointments to self-surrender at ports of entry so they can start their asylum claims. Those who are caught illegally crossing the border will be deported and will not be able to participate in the program.
"First, if they are seeking asylum, they can use an app on their cell phone called CBP One...to schedule an appointment at a port of entry and make their asylum claim there without crossing the border unlawfully and have a decision determine by an asylum officer do they qualify," he explained.
The program is modeled after what DHS did for Venezuelans in the fall of last year, ramping up deportations for illegal crossers while allowing those who self-surrender to be allowed inside the country. The number of Venezuelans who illegally crossed the southern border dropped but many were waiting in Mexico for Title 42 to be lifted.
Analysis: This new policy will almost certainly reduce *recorded* monthly border crossing numbers because these nationalities are crossing in massive numbers. However, migrants not eligible for parole will have no incentive to turn themselves in now, & will evade as “gotaways”.
— Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) January 5, 2023
"Initially this will be used for those seeking an exception from the Title 42 public health order. Once the Title 42 order is no longer in place, CBP One will be used to help ensure safe and orderly processing at ports of entry," DHS said in a statement. "DHS is increasing and enhancing the use of expedited removal under Title 8 authorities for those who cannot be processed under the Title 42 public health order. These efforts include surging personnel and resources and enrolling individuals under the asylum processing interim final rule published in March 2022."
During his speech, Biden blamed Republicans in Congress multiple times for not voting in favor of amnesty or any of the other ideas he has proposed. When asked why he is finally visiting the border in El Paso, Texas on Sunday after years of Republicans asking him to go, Biden said Republicans aren't serious about border security and he wanted to see what was going to happen to Title 42, which will be decided by the Supreme Court sometime this year. Biden had previously stated there were more important things to do than visit the area.
After recently stating there were more important things to do than visit the southern border, Biden now says he hasn't visited because Republicans aren't serious about border security and he wanted to see what was going to happen with the legal challenges over Title 42. pic.twitter.com/plKbbOirlt
— Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) January 5, 2023