Date: May 8, 2023
Host: Jim Schneider
Guest: Mark Krikorian
MP3 | Order
As the Biden administration was put in place in 2021, Biden appointed Vice President Harris to be the “point person” regarding the border. The administration assured Americans that she would get to the root causes of illegal immigration and that would solve our border problems.
In 2022 we saw Harris traveling to Honduras. She came back announcing a deal that involved some 500 million in private investment to Central America with large U.S. corporations engaging in infrastructure projects. Then earlier this year she spoke of progress being made but unfortunately, the problem has grown exponentially worse. In addition, the flood gates have yet to fully open as Title 42 is set to end this Thursday, May 11th.
Returning to Crosstalk to present an update on the border crisis was Mark Krikorian. Mark is a nationally recognized expert on immigration issues serving as the executive director of Center for Immigration Studies. They are an independent, non-partisan research organization examining and critiquing the impact of immigration on the United States. He’s testified numerous times before Congress and has published articles in many outlets.
According to Mark, while the Trump administration wasn’t perfect when it came to the border issue, they had stabilized it, fixing the immediate problem that was facing them. The Biden administration, on the other hand, starting the day he was sworn in, reversed nearly every Trump policy. They did this, in spite of the fact that officials in the Trump administration warned them how disastrous the result would be and everything they were warned about has come true.
At the core of this debate is Title 42 which as noted, is set to expire on Thursday. Title 42 is short-hand for a public health order that dates back to COVID. It authorizes the border patrol to send back anyone that’s caught crossing over into the U.S. There’s no hearings and no asylum.
This is the only Trump era policy the Biden administration has kept in place but they’ve been applying it to fewer and fewer numbers of people that they catch. However, even with the exceptions, they’ve been expelling, without placing them in the asylum pipeline, at least one-third of those who come across the border. So even when used in this watered-down form, Title 42 is still a tool the border patrol can use to prevent the current disaster from becoming even worse.
After midnight on the 11th, all those who come across, especially single men who were being bounced back, will now be able to claim asylum, and they’ll get placed in the asylum pipeline. There’ll be no detention for any length of time which means they’ll end up letting go even more illegal immigrants.
Mark also noted that since Biden came into office, his administration has taken into custody and let go more than 2 million illegal aliens. That’s more than legal immigration during that same time frame. This makes sneaking across the border the main way people now come to the U.S. as an immigrant.
What’s causing this? Mark communicated that this administration speaks as though this is caused by climate change and white supremacy and therefore they have no control over the problem. It’s like the tides or continental drift and we just have to accommodate ourselves to it. He disagrees and noted that people are coming because it’s worth the money and the risk.
This broadcast was highlighted by audio cuts from Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Vice President Kamala Harris and input from Crosstalk listeners.
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