The final numbers will not be released by the Department of Homeland Security for weeks, but Bill Melugin reported this Saturday there were over 260,000 immigrants apprehended at the southwest border this September, a number that if confirmed would be an all-time record high, beating President Joe Biden’s earlier record set last December at 252,000.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was not asked about that number at Monday’s press briefing, but she was pressed on Gov. Kathy Hochul’s (D-NY) statement from this Sunday that the Biden administration needed “a limit on who can come across the border” and that “it is too open right now.”
YOUNGKIN FIGHTS TO MAKE VIRGINIA THE REAL FREEDOM STATE
In response, Jean-Pierre articulated a three-part Biden plan to address the border, including enforcement, deterrence, and diplomacy.
On enforcement, Jean-Pierre noted thousands of agents have been deployed to the border and that these agents have “removed or returned more than 250,000 individuals since May 12." This may sound impressive until you realize that the Biden administration has encountered over 660,000 migrants over that same time frame, and that number doesn’t include the additional 260,000 encountered in September.
So of the 660,000 migrants encountered crossing the southern border since May 12, Biden has let in more than half! That is what Biden considers enforcement!
Then, on deterrence, Jean-Pierre said, “We have had the largest expansion of pathways … in decades.” It is not clear what Jean-Pierre is talking about here, but she probably means the completely unprecedented and illegal parole program that had admitted over 500,000 immigrants on an allegedly temporary basis through June alone. Hundreds of thousands more have since been admitted.
Putting the legality of Biden’s parole program aside for a moment, on what planet does letting more migrants into the country “deter” other migrants from coming? Certainly not this one, which is why illegal immigration is surpassing record highs already set by Biden as he expands his illegal parole programs even further.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The only way to deter illegal immigration is to 1) catch people crossing the border and then 2) not release them into the United States (this is the most important part).
Biden is doing fine at step one, it is step two that he has proved completely incapable of handling. And that is why illegal immigration is only getting worse.