Biden’s border meltdown goes from crisis to catastrophe

Upon taking office in January 2021, President Joe Biden immediately halted construction of the wall on the southern border and undercut Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) efforts by prohibiting agents from carrying out most deportations. That served as Biden’s welcome mat, inviting illegal aliens from more than 100 countries to pour across our wide open border, which they proceeded to do in record numbers.

Since then, there have been 5 million illegal crossings of our southern border, more than 1.3 million illegal immigrants have evaded apprehension at our southern border, and federal agents have seized over 14,000 pounds of fentanyl — enough to kill every American 10 times over.

And that was with the Trump-era restriction known as “Title 42” still in place, which was the last tool Biden was using to keep some would-be border crossers from entering the U.S. Now, with Title 42’s expiration this week, Biden has replaced his welcome mat with a red carpet. Analysts across the political spectrum agree this will turn the ongoing flood of illegal aliens over Biden’s first two years into a deluge.

Even the mayors of “sanctuary cities” like New York and Chicago - Democrat-run jurisdictions that have long boasted about their refusal to enforce any restrictions on illegal aliens - are now demanding action from Biden, and threatening to ship the aliens in their cities off to neighboring suburbs.

The “fundamental transformation” of America that the Obama-Biden Administration had promised, the Biden-Harris Administration has accelerated: millions of poor illegal aliens added to our population from more than 100 countries, along with more drug smugglers, human traffickers, and terrorists. Billions in additional tax dollars to take care of all these people, and overstuffed public schools are among the consequences; as are more drug deaths from narcotics that are already killing 100,000 Americans annually.

To combat President Biden’s self-inflicted catastrophe, the House this week passed H.R. 2, the Secure Border Act of 2023. This legislation would force the Biden Administration to restart construction of the border wall and increase the number of Border Patrol agents. It would end Biden’s “catch and release” policy, and strengthen and streamline the asylum process. It would also take further steps to protect unaccompanied children from human trafficking. (One of the most disgraceful elements of Biden’s border policies is that it incentivizes foreign parents to hand their children over to drug traffickers to shuttle them across the border. Unspeakable crimes against these children are routine during the dangerous trip.)

President Biden should stop turning a blind eye to the chaos his policies are causing, and enforce our border and immigration laws, which he took an oath to do. His refusal to faithfully execute our laws is unprecedented, dangerous, and reckless.

H.R. 2 – Secure the Border Act of 2023 – YEA

H.R. 1163 – Protecting Taxpayers and Victims of Unemployment Fraud Act – YEA

Would recover potentially hundreds of billions of dollars in stolen unemployment insurance benefits by providing states with incentives to investigate and recover lost funds
Improves program integrity to prevent future fraud
Extends the statute of limitations for prosecuting fraud

USA Rice

Bipartisan Group of Members of Congress Ask Biden Admin to Take India WTO Case on Rice and Wheat Subsidies

Last week, a bipartisan group of 18 Members of the House, led by Rep. Tracey Mann (R-KS) and I, sent a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Tai and Secretary of Agriculture Vilsack asking for more action at the World Trade Organization (WTO) on behalf of U.S. rice and wheat growers. The letter is targeted specifically toward abuses by India.

Agri-Pulse

Daybreak May 10: House Ag moving precision ag bill (registration required)

The U.S. has twice filed counter notifications with the World Trade Organization to demonstrate that India is vastly under-reporting its subsidies for wheat and rice production, and now House members are urging the U.S. Trade Representative to officially challenge the Indian policy.

“India has disregarded WTO commitments for at least a decade, leading to entrenched policies and an increasingly justified perception that the rules will not be enforced,” Reps. Rick Crawford, R-Ark., Tracey Mann, R-Kans., and 16 other members wrote in a letter to USTR Katherine Tai and USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack. “Meanwhile, these policies have global spillover that degrade market opportunities for farmers in the United States and other countries that comply with the WTO agriculture rules.”

Australia, Canada, Paraguay, Thailand, and Ukraine backed the second U.S. counter notification on India.

KTVE

Arkansas lawmakers join with House Republicans to pass border security act

When President Biden took office, he put out a welcome mat for illegal migrants, inviting them into our country as word spread that his Administration would fly them to any destination in the country, at taxpayers’ expense. Millions responded, flooding our nation with undocumented immigrants, overcrowding our schools and hospitals, and allowing drug cartels to traffic fentanyl and other deadly drugs throughout our nation. Now, with Title 42 ending, Biden is replacing his welcome mat with a red carpet, moving this from a crisis to a catastrophe.