High migrant crossings are being "fueled by smugglers peddling disinformation to prey on vulnerable individuals," the agency said. Acting commissioner Troy A. Miller said CBP is targeting these smuggling operations. 

In The New York Times, Li Yuan reports on why a growing number of Chinese migrants are trying to reach the U.S.: a fear of poverty and persecution. "I think we will only be safe by coming to the U.S.," said migrant Gao Zhibin, who is now in San Francisco. "It’s a rare opportunity to protect me and my family." 

CBP says more than 24,000 Chinese migrants were detained on the U.S. southern border in fiscal year 2023. This is an incredible reversal of previous patterns seen by the Chinese populations coming to the U.S. 

Meanwhile, El Paso Bishop (and Forum board member) Mark Seitz’s words about his work with migrants, as reported by Aleja Hertzler-McCain of the National Catholic Review, are powerful. "We've made [immigration] simply a matter of numbers and ideas rather than dealing with human beings who we believe as Christians are our brothers and sisters," Seitz said. But he also finds hope: "It's the immigrants themselves who are people who teach me how much we need to really trust God and trust his goodness to work among those for whom he has a special love." 

Welcome to Monday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s strategic communications VP, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Jillian Clark, Isabella Miller and Darika Verdugo. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected]. 

CONGRESS — Bipartisan negotiations in the Senate over adding border security to President Biden’s funding request for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan appear to be derailed, as Punchbowl News summarizes this morning. The holdup: "Republicans’ continued insistence on including elements of H.R. 2, the House GOP border-security bill that’s a nonstarter for Democrats." (Here’s the Forum’s summary of the bill.) Meanwhile, immigration attorney Ava Benach breaks down the potential asylum changes with Myah Ward, Lauren Egan and Benjamin Jogansen of Politico. 

BUOY RULING — A federal appeals court ruled Friday that Texas must dismantle the buoy barrier installed near Eagle Pass to block migrants, Todd J. Gillman and Aarón Torres of The Dallas Morning News report. A 5th Circuit Court of Appeals panel upheld a lower court's finding that Texas violated an 1899 federal law prohibiting construction in navigable rivers without permission. Gov. Greg Abbott said the state will request a hearing before the full 5th Circuit. 

DEMOGRAPHICS — U.S. demographics are moving in the direction of countries that are having age-related economic challenges, Andre Mouchard reports in The Orange County Register. "If it weren’t for our high level of immigration, we would already look like some of the older populations in Asia and Europe," said Julia Gelatt of the Migration Policy Institute. "The thing that most immigration scholars agree on — even the ones who aren’t necessarily pro-immigration — is that while it’s not a silver bullet, immigration can help." 

CLINIC — A work authorization clinic in Massachusetts helped more than 1,700 migrants take steps to find work and potentially move out of the state shelter system, reports Katie Lannan of GBH News. At the clinic, held at a National Guard facility, 500-plus volunteers assisted migrants. State officials are considering another such event.   

Thanks for reading, 

Dan  

P.S. First Presbyterian Church of Chicago recently hosted a dinner to bring together migrants and community residents, Vi Nguyen of NBC Chicago reports. "[I]t’s just really important for us to all realize we’re all human," said church elder and volunteer coordinator Dionne Jones.