Homeland Security

WASHINGTON—The Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) has filed a friend-of-the-court brief in a Florida federal district court opposing the Biden administration’s latest attempt to rid itself of the state of Florida’s lawsuit challenging its policy of catching and releasing illegal aliens.

In moving for summary judgment against Florida, the administration claims it has unbounded discretion about whether to detain and deport illegal aliens, and so its policy of simply not enforcing the law cannot be reviewed by a court. In its brief, IRLI shows that, in fact, Congress very clearly and sharply limited the administration’s discretion when it mandated that illegal aliens be detained and removed from the country. . . . Read more about IRLI Defends Florida in Catch-and-Release Suit

Late on Friday October 21, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) finally released the September numbers for illegal aliens encountered at the Southwest Border: 227,547, an all-time high for any September on record. The numbers themselves make it clear why the Biden administration is so keen on keeping them out of the press and away from public view. In a functioning administration, legally mandated reporting of routine data doesn’t require coaxing or righteous vows. Unfortunately for Americans, the Biden administration’s sole function on the border seems to be allowing as many illegal aliens to cross as possible while trying to obscure that fact from the interested public. . . . Read more about Biden’s Belated Border Numbers Tell a Terrifying Tale

WASHINGTON—Yesterday, the Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) submitted a friend-of-court brief in a Maryland district court in support of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which is being sued by aliens in a case putting at issue whether immigration law should be rewritten by the court in a way that would provide a large incentive for marriage fraud.

The plaintiffs are a class of aliens who have been given final orders of removal but still seek to stay in the country. The aliens, who had married U.S. citizens at some point but never received green cards on that basis, seek to have the execution of their removal orders suspended so they can apply for certain discretionary relief without being arrested and deported while applying for that relief. If they are deported, they will have to wait years before they can return. If they apply for and are granted the discretionary relief, they still will have to leave the country, but will be able to return more quickly. . . . Read more about The Marriage Maneuver

Approximately 60 previously deported Venezuelan migrants rushed the northbound lane of an international port of entry leading to Brownsville, Texas, Friday. The effort forced a shutdown of the port for several hours.

Mexican authorities were unable to stop the group from entering the facilities of Gateway International Bridge as they made their way toward the U.S. side. Officers with U.S. Customs and Border Protection rapidly set up barricades and preventative measures to keep individuals from trying to force their way further north. . . . Read more about WATCH: Deported Venezuelan Migrants Shut Down Texas Border Port of Entry

The Biden administration opened an investigation into Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s flight of illegal immigrants from the U.S.-Mexico border to Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, last month.

The Treasury Department’s inspector general confirmed it is evaluating whether DeSantis allegedly misused COVID-19 relief funds to send the illegal aliens to the wealthy liberal hotspot, said Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) on Wednesday.

A Treasury Department inspector general letter (pdf), dated Oct. 7 and posted by the senator’s office Wednesday, told Markey and other members of Congress that it will evaluate Florida’s COVID-19-related spending. . . . Read more about Treasury Department Investigating DeSantis Illegal Immigrant Flights to Martha’s Vineyard

Hours before attending a White House press conference in which Border Patrol agents were excoriated by President Joe Biden for allegedly whipping Haitian migrants from horseback, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas was advised the allegations were challenged by the primary witness. Biden was still left to claim, “To see people treated like they did, horses barely running over, people being strapped, it’s outrageous.” The administration was reacting to photographs of a migrant border surge in Del Rio, Texas, at the time in 2021.

An exclusive Fox News report details a September 24, 2021, email, obtained by the Heritage Foundation via a Freedom of Information Act request. The email to Mayorkas and other DHS leaders from Marsha Espinosa, Assistant Secretary of DHS public affairs, included a news article in which the photographer who took the photograph directly stated he did not observe any agents whipping the migrants. . . . Read more about Emails: Sec. Mayorkas Knew Haitians Not Whipped by Border Patrol Agents Before White House Briefing

Three more counties are the latest to express support for Texas declaring an invasion at the southern border, bringing the total to 32.

The judge and county commissioners of Ector County, in the Permian Basin, signed a Declaration of Local State of Disaster on Sept. 27 stating the “health, safety, and welfare of Ector County residents are under an imminent threat of disaster from the unprecedented levels of illegal immigration, human trafficking, and drug smuggling coming across the U.S. border from Mexico.” . . . Read more about 3 More Counties Want Texas to Declare Invasion at Southern Border; Total at 32

A recent report issued by the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General (DHS OIG) contains alarming data about the U.S. Border Patrol’s mishandling of alien personal data during the current border crisis. Coverage on the report leaves out the practical effects of this mishandling, which threatens to leave potentially hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens untraceable and in legal limbo.

In a sample of the nearly 400,000 illegal aliens released into the U.S. during a six-month period in 2021, more than one-fourth were not issued alien registration numbers (A-numbers). These numbers are tied to individual files with biographical information and are essential for virtually every government function related to migration. . . . Read more about Border Patrol Audit Shows Crucial Step Being Skipped, Harming Americans and Migrants Alike

Enforcing laws has not exactly been the Democrats’ strong suit in recent years. At the federal level, the Biden administration has blatantly gutted border and immigration enforcement and is even defying court rulings ordering them to resume enforcement. At the state and local level, prosecutors have essentially nullified entire sections of criminal and civil codes by refusing to prosecute many offenders, while in some states “progressive” laws require that even violent criminals are routinely released without bail. . . . Read more about Democrats Beef Up Tax Enforcement, But Let Immigration Enforcement Languish

More than a year and a half into the Biden administration, the White House continues to double down on lies, denials, and spin whenever its spokespeople are pressed on the out-of-control border crisis. By doing so, the administration is demonstrating a shameless refusal to take responsibility for the effects of its own open-borders policies. It is also insulting the intelligence of the American people, a large majority of whom are apparently not buying the official narrative. Needless to say, attempting to deny reality is hardly a solid basis for good policy. . . . Read more about The Biden Administration (Once Again) Denies the Reality of the Border Crisis