There is a crisis at the Southern border in the United States with thousands pouring across the border almost daily. Roughly 15,000 illegal alien unaccompanied minors are being held in U.S. custody.
Congressman Bennie Thompson (D) told MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell that some of those children are being dispersed to other government facilities thousands of miles from the border, saying he has even had people in Mississippi’s 2nd Congressional District who are willing to take them in if the Department of Homeland Security will certify them.
“I’m hearing from people in my area who want to facilitate some of the young people, and I’m 1500 miles from the border,” Thompson said. “But there are people who have a conscience who want to help. We need to make sure that those people are certified so that if they want to help that they meet the test.”
ICYMI: Chairman @BennieGThompson was on @MSNBC @mitchellreports to discuss the southwest border and how we can work on real solutions in line with our American values. pic.twitter.com/U2fRsNouTS
— House Homeland Security Committee Democrats (@HomelandDems) March 22, 2021
Congressman Thompson told Mitchell that DHS was creating facilities to accommodate the minors as the numbers grow. He said this response is part of the American value system.
“We have, as Americans, a value system, and so part of our value system is quite clear,” Thompson said. “We are humanitarians, we understand challenges and when people present themselves at the border like the young people are presenting themselves we have to accept that, let them in and take care of them.”
Yet, just last weekend, newly minted Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas told ABC News the border is closed, trying to now shift the Biden Administration’s welcoming open border position and reimplementation of “catch and release” following a dramatic rise in illegals crossing the border.
“The message is quite clear, do not come. The border is closed, the border is secure,” Mayorkas said on ABC’s “This Week.”
“We are encouraging children not to come,” Mayorkas said. “Now is not the time to come. Do not come. The journey is dangerous. We are building safe, orderly and humane ways to address the needs of vulnerable children. Do not come.”
Mayorkas has said we are on pace for one of the largest migrant surges in 20 years.
Congressman Thompson took the opportunity to jab at former President Donald Trump, telling Mitchell that the Trump Administration’s “remain in Mexico” policy was inhumane.
“The Trump Administration had a different policy [than Biden],” Thompson said. “That ‘remain in Mexico’ policy,’ those policies of inhuman treatment along the border, that’s not who we are. So I will give President Biden and his administration opportunity to help alleviate these problems.”
Frank Corder
