Washington, D.C. (February 16, 2024) - Jessica M. Vaughan of the Center for Immigration Studies
testified before Congress Thursday on the Biden administration’s catch-and-release policies that have been the major reason for the border crisis.
Vaughan, the Center’s Director of Policy Studies, appeared before the U.S. House Oversight and Accountability Committee Subcommittee on National Security, the Border and Foreign Affairs. She highlighted the 3.3 million illegal migrants apprehended and released since Biden took office. Fewer than 1 percent of these individuals have been removed after their generous due process, burdening taxpayers with their support.
The short-term costs of sheltering and aiding these illegal migrants have already soared into the billions. Moreover, the long-term financial burden is projected to reach hundreds of billions. This does not even account for the exploitation and abuse rampant within migrant communities, including alarming rates of human trafficking and cartel-related crime.
“While employers seeking cheap labor and the NGOs getting lucrative contracts love these policies, it’s the Mexican cartels who love them the most,” said Vaughan. “They are reaping unprecedented profits, to the tune of $30 million a day, and as a result they represent a serious threat to civil society and the rule of law throughout the hemisphere – and here, within the United States.”
The Biden administration’s commitment to these failed policies necessitates immediate action from Congress. The recent Senate-negotiated bill, far from a solution, would have codified catch-and-release policies into law and provided $7 billion in funding for hotels, meals, work permits, counselors, ankle bracelets, and asylum officers for released illegal migrants. Vaughan called on Congress to assert control over immigration policy through the appropriations process, prioritizing the removal of criminal aliens and those who have failed in their immigration proceedings or failed to show up for them.
Vaughan noted that, instead of subsidizing the sanctuary jurisdictions, Congress should redirect resources to those states actively working to secure the borders, disrupt human trafficking, discourage illegal employment, and arrest criminal aliens. Alternative funding mechanisms, such as collecting fees for remittance transfers and funneling them to enforcement, should be adopted.
Oversight committees must scrutinize the misallocation of taxpayer funds and investigate the regulatory changes facilitating de facto amnesty programs for Biden’s illegal migrants. The dismantling of enforcement policies, the abuse of parole, the billions of dollars that have been spent so far by the network of government contractors that have cashed in on this disaster also must be investigated.
Vaughan also recommended considering measures to reduce legal immigration to counter the high levels of illegal immigration, to mitigate the fiscal costs and labor market distortions caused by Biden policies.
Watch the hearing and read Vaughan’s complete written statement
here.
