The Biden administration is sending 1,500 troops to the southern border in preparation for a surge of migrants next week.
The move comes days before the Title 42 policy ends. The pandemic-era rule allowed the U.S. Border Patrol to expel asylum seekers due to concerns over COVID. With Title 42 set to expire on May 11, the administration is anticipating a wave of illegal crossings.
So far in 2023, the Border Patrol already has seen a huge uptick in migrant encounters over last year – a 134 percent increase. As Title 42 is on the verge of ending, they expect it will get worse, and the administration is calling in reinforcements.
“In light of the changes on May 11 and the anticipated surge, DHS did reach out and request this support,” explained Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder.
As soon as next week, the Pentagon says the first of the 1,500 active-duty troops could arrive at the U.S.–Mexico border.
Border Patrol agents say help is desperately needed to process the anticipated migrant surge, which could top 10,000 per day.
“I don’t have enough agents; I don’t have enough infrastructure; I don’t have enough technology,” said U.S. Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz. “I have other areas where I think our agents have really locked down the border security situation.”
To allow border agents to directly deal with migrants, the White House says the troops will be at the border for 90 days and only in a support role.
“These personnel will be performing administrative tasks like data entry and warehouse support,” explained White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. “They will not be performing law enforcement functions.”
Republicans have put the blame on President Joe Biden for relaxing restrictions at the border and escalating the crisis.
Gov. Greg Abbott (R-Texas) tweeted in part, “This does nothing to stop illegal immigration. I deployed up to 10,000 Texas National Guard to the border to fill the gaps created by Biden’s reckless open border policies.”
However, the White House says it’s up to Congress to produce meaningful immigration reform.
“The president understands that we need a system, an immigration system that needs to meet the moment, that’s modernized,” said Jean-Pierre.
Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema – a former member of the Democratic Party who became an independent in December 2022 – weighed in on the border crisis on Fox News.
“There are a lot of bipartisan plans that we’ve been working on with some of our colleagues in the Senate and the House that could actually make a difference,” Sinema said. “It would be most helpful if the administration would start by actually enforcing the laws that are on the books.”
Meanwhile, U.S. and Mexican leaders have agreed on new immigration policies designed to prevent illegal border crossings.
Under the agreement, Mexico will continue to accept migrants from Venezuela, Haiti, Cuba and Nicaragua who are not allowed to enter the U.S.