The Forum Daily | Thursday, January 04, 2024
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THE FORUM DAILY

Yesterday the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the state of
Texas over the new state law allowing state police to arrest migrants
suspected of crossing the border illegally, reports Uriel J. García of
The Texas Tribune
.  

The Texas law would take effect on March 5 and would make it a state
crime to cross the Texas-Mexico border between ports of entry. In the
lawsuit, the federal government argues that the law undermines its
authority to enforce immigration law.   

"We have brought this action to ensure that Texas adheres to the
framework adopted by Congress and the Constitution for regulation of
immigration," Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department's Civil
Division, said in a statement. 

It is not the only action the federal government has taken this week
regarding Texas: As we noted yesterday, on Tuesday the Biden
administration asked the Supreme Court to allow Border Patrol agents to
remove razor wire Texas has installed at the border.  

The real-world impacts of Gov. Greg Abbott's Operation Lone Star
aren't limited to migrants. For NPR's Morning Edition
,
Angela Kocherga shares the story of a family of U.S. citizens who say
they were wrongfully targeted, as she first reported for KTEP
. 

Welcome to Thursday'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, Clara Villatoro and
Katie Lutz. If you have a story to share from your own community, please
send it to me at [email protected]
.  

**SOON TO RESUME** - With congressional negotiations slated to resume
Monday regarding funding for Ukraine and border issues, Andy J. Semotiuk
offers a summary in Forbes
 of the
negotiations before and during the holiday break. Separately, 60 House
Republicans visited Eagle Pass, Texas, report Lindsay Wise and Michelle
Hackman of The Wall Street Journal
.
During the trip, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) said any
border deal must be based on hardline immigration bill HR 2
. 

**HELP NEEDED** - In his syndicated column
,
Steve Roberts highlights the need for more immigrant workers: "[T]he
contentious debate over the border masks a larger long-term issue: how
to open America to more legal immigrants." Separately, Howard Gleckman
highlights in Forbes

that if Congress imposes new restrictions on migrants, already strained
health care facilities and agencies could face a profound impact.
Improving the visa system to help qualified workers could alleviate
health sector shortages, he notes. 

**PERILOUS JOURNEY** - About 30 migrants abducted in Mexico close to
the U.S. border over the weekend have been rescued, report Simon Romero
and Emiliano Rodríguez Mega of The New York Times
.
The kidnapping underscores the risks migrants face in parts of northern
Mexico, they note. Meanwhile, Reuters

reports that about 520,000 migrants traversed the dangerous Darién Gap
between Colombia and Panama in 2023. 

**GROWING COMMUNITY** - Minnesota's Afghan immigrant population is
growing, report Hibah Ansari and Cynthia Tu of the Sahan Journal
. Zahra
Wahidy moved to Minnesota in 2022, initially knowing only her brother.
However, she soon established connections within the local Afghan
community, including reuniting with a former co-worker at an event. Many
are finding a sense of belonging. "It's good to build a new life in
Minnesota," Wahidy said. "There are job opportunities; it's also
affordable to live here, to build a life here." 

Thanks for reading,  

Dan 

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