"We're examining whether or not I have that power," Biden said. Taking executive action on the border is considered the "nuclear option" by those inside the White House, Nichols notes, and the administration has not made a final decision. 

Separately, rising temperatures as summer approaches are likely to increase the number of migrant deaths at the U.S.-Mexico border, report Ali Bradley and Urja Sinha of NewsNation.  

"Nothing changes with the level of migration, and we get the 118-to-120-degree days down there. We’re likely going to see unprecedented amounts of death in the desert," said Tucson Sector Chief Patrol Agent John Modlin.  

The federal government is partnering with Mexican officials and local leaders to promote the "No Se Arriesgue" (in English, "Don’t Risk Your Life") campaign, reports Julian Resendiz of Border Report. 

The campaign warns migrants against crossing at a particular stretch of the border along New Mexico that is particularly dangerous. 

"This site symbolizes the struggle of thousands of migrants who are exploited by transnational criminal organizations and smuggled across this treacherous terrain with complete disregard for their safety," said El Paso Sector Border Patrol Chief Agent Anthony "Scott" Good.  

Welcome to Wednesday’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, Darika Verdugo and Clara Villatoro. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected]. 

FLORIDA LAWS — A roofer and father of two is believed to be the first person who will be prosecuted under Florida’s strict 2023 immigration law, reports Miguel Octavio of WTSP. The man is accused of bringing other migrants into the state last summer. Octavio also examines newer anti-immigration legislation in Florida and the laws’ local effects. "People just want to be able to survive and be able to thrive and add to this to this great state," said Nanci Palacios, deputy director of Faith in Florida and a DACA recipient. 

FEAR — A new poll indicates that more than half of adult Latinos in the U.S. fear possible mass deportation efforts "regardless of legal status," reports Russell Contreras of Axios. Former President Donald Trump has said several times that mass deportations would be part of a second term in office. Large-scale deportation has swept U.S. citizens up in the past, Contreras notes. 

REALITY — In more heartening news, we may not be as polarized as we think we are, Jim VandeHei and Mike Allen of Axios write (and yes, immigration gets a mention). Americans have "a striking amount of agreement on some very big topics" per a new finding from the Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, they note. They conclude with a thought experiment that might "help pop your reality distortion bubble." 

DIGNITY — Former Rep. Reid Ribble (R-Wisconsin) highlights the perspective of many evangelicals and defends the dignity of all human beings in a Green Bay Press Gazette op-ed. Citing recent Lifeway Research findings, Ribble emphasizes that a vast majority of evangelicals want policies that keep families together. "If Trump, or Biden, wants to appeal to Christian voters, they would do well to use language and pursue policies that reflect the dignity of each person as made in the Image of God," Ribble writes. 

Thanks for reading,  

Dan 

P.S. Two quick hits, also heartening: Joshua Vorse of Rocky Mountain PBS writes of community support for ag workers and their families in Colorado’s Grand Valley. And Arelis R. Hernández of The Washington Post covers what the eclipse brought to Eagle Pass, Texas, at least for a day.