The 38 Senators state that the Biden Administration violated promise to remove most from recent crisis at Del Rio port of entry
This week, U.S. Senators Roger Wicker and Cindy Hyde-Smith joined 36 of their colleagues in demanding an explanation of how most of the thousands of Haitian migrants recently encamped at the Del Rio, Texas, port of entry were released into the interior of the United States instead of facing removal as the Biden administration previously pledged.
The 38 Senators wrote a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to inquire about the Department of Homeland Security’s response to the recent surge of migrants into Del Rio.
“While we applaud the Administration’s original stated intent to expel the majority of migrants under the CDC’s Title 42 order or to expeditiously remove them, we are concerned that DHS did not actually carry out this plan, deployed resources in a manner that weakened border security, and undermined the deterrent effect of any future statements that the Biden Administration will enforce our immigration laws at the border,” the Senators wrote.
The Senators wrote that the New York Times described the conditions underneath the Del Rio International Bridge as “squalid” and due to the migrant population size and concentration, there is a large risk of COVID-19 transmission.
Senator Hyde-Smith posted on Twitter that, “POTUS’ response to his ongoing #BorderCrisis only makes it more likely that we will continue to experience surges like the one in #DelRio. Most of the thousands of Haitian migrants were released into the US instead of facing removal as the White House pledged. We need answers.”
.@POTUS response to his ongoing #BorderCrisis only makes it more likely that we will continue to experience surges like the one in #DelRio. Most of the thousands of Haitian migrants were released into the US instead of facing removal as the @WhiteHouse pledged. We need answers.
— U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (@SenHydeSmith) October 8, 2021
“The administration’s response to the ongoing border crisis only makes it more likely that we will continue to experience surges like the one in Del Rio. In August, despite the summer heat, encounters along the southwest border stood above 200,000 for the second month in a row. Until DHS consistently enforces our immigration laws to swiftly remove migrants with weak or nonexistent asylum claims, smuggling organizations will continue to prey on these individuals and convince them to undertake the treacherous journey to our southwest border,” the letter concluded.
They state in the letter that in order to understand DHS’s response to the recent influx of migrants in Del Rio, for DHS to respond to thirteen questions by October 19.
Read the full letter here.
Anne Summerhays
