Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Majorkas spoke out in defense of the Biden Administration’s recent executive order, which would require a shutdown of the U.S.-Mexico southern border when certain migrant thresholds are met. The long-term impact of the executive order would be to maintain an average number of migrant encounters at the border of 1,500 or less over a seven-day period. The order specifically targets migrants seeking asylum at the border.
Migrant Encounter Thresholds
The average of 1,500 migrant encounters over a seven-day span is lower than any the current Biden Administration has seen during the past four years. Reducing the number of migrants attempting to cross the border will take time, and Mayorkas was not able to confirm that that number would be practical to expect by the November election.
Path to Implementation
Mayorkas claimed that the executive order would be ultimately successful, but the path to implementation must be carefully implemented. Mayorkas said, “We are at a very early stage. Implementation, as you noted, has just begun.”
Mayorkas Says Moving in Right Direction as Order Rolls Out
Although the Executive Order took effect less than one week ago, Mayorkas claims that “the signs are positive. Our personnel have done an extraordinary job implementing a big shift in how we operate on the southern border.”
Biden’s Executive Order
Biden’s executive order was a significant initiative from the Biden Administration to take a more rigid stance on the migrant crisis. Border states had long complained that they could no longer sustainably absorb the new entries.
Concerns on How Large Migrant Population Will Impact Housing and Economy
Furthermore, the large migration population has not yet reached its full impact on the economy and housing crunch felt by Americans nationwide.
Voters Name Immigration as a Top Priority in Choosing Candidates
Additionally, some voters blame the massive numbers of immigrants on the crime and drug wars in the country. Members of both parties have indicated in polls that immigration is a top priority when selecting a candidate to vote for at all levels in November.
Senate Bill Failure
The executive action came following the failure of a bipartisan bill in the Senate that would have initiated similar protocols to shut down the border when certain thresholds were reached. The border bill failed when it turned political. President Donald Trump got involved in keeping it from passing and, therefore, being a victory on immigration that Democrats could point to in November.
Target Numbers and Communication
Although Mayorkas was unwilling to give any specific dates estimating when numbers align with the targeted number of migrant entries, he did tell ABC News Host Martha Raddatz in a televised interview, “An average of 1,500 individuals encountered over a seven-day consecutive period– we are driving to that, and that’s not all we’re doing. We are also communicating throughout the region about the lawful pathways.”
Congressional Action
Mayorkas and all other parties know that Congress’s action is the only stable and permanent way to fix some of the broken parts of the immigration pipeline. Executive orders are only good until the next Presidential Administration overturns them.
Political and Humanitarian Perspectives
While many view President Biden’s actions on immigration to be purely political to have a winning talking point for Democrats in the election, Mayorkas provided a different explanation, stating, “The bipartisan deal was rejected once, we pressed for it again, it was rejected a second time, and then we developed this and have implemented it, and we are at an early stage, and let’s not minimize the significance of this move and the significance of operationalizing it.”
Dignity and Legal Defense
In the ABC News interview, Raddatz read Mayorkas Biden’s words from 2020, in which he stated that the U.S. should “enforce our immigration laws with dignity, not turn away those fleeing violence, war, and poverty.” She suggested that the executive order potentially conflicted with that statement and asked for Mayorkas’s response.
Mayorkas Holds that the Order Will be Sustained and Found Legally Sound
Mayorkas defended the Biden Executive Order, stating that it was legal and humane and that the Administration invites and expects challenges but ultimately expects the order to remain legally intact.
Humanitarian Obligation to Protect Migrants Who Are Themselves Exploited By Others
Mayorkas said, “We stand by the legality of our actions. We stand by the value proposition. It’s not only a matter of securing the border, Martha; we have a humanitarian obligation to keep vulnerable people out of the hands of exploitative smugglers. There have been many stories about the trauma and the tragedy inflicted by those organizations.”
