Democrats criticized his new enforcement plan and Republicans pointed out his delay in visiting the border, Shear and Sandoval note. The president’s visit to El Paso was brief and included limited contact with migrants. On the Mexican side, migrants who have been turned back to Mexico hoped to see him.  

"I’m hoping against hope that he does something for us," said Denyerlin Chirino, a Venezuelan migrant.  

President Biden met with some leaders in the area, including Catholic Bishop (and Forum board member) Mark Seitz, per Cindy Ramirez, Corrie Boudreaux and Robert Moore of El Paso Matters. Seitz gave Biden a card with the Sacred Heart of Jesus on one side and a prayer on the back by a girl from a shelter in Juarez: "Lord, I ask that you get me out of here fast, help me with my case, I want to be with my mommy and my sister soon. Amen." 

Aaron A. Bedoya and colleagues at the El Paso Times have more on how the day unfolded. 

Meanwhile, Kate Linthicum of The Los Angeles Times reports on the humanitarian situation in Mexico. "Thousands of people from some of the world’s most oppressive countries [are] marooned in Mexico because of the expansion of a Trump administration policy that allows border agents to immediately expel migrants without considering their asylum claims," Linthicum writes. 

Looking ahead, Myah Ward and Jonathan Lemire of Politico write about the border discussion expected during the North America Leaders’ Summit, which starts today. (Reporters: Forum policy experts are available for comment on the summit, Biden’s border approach, and the ultimate need for Congress to partner on effective, compassionate solutions.) 

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 Dynahlee Padilla-Vasquez, Clara Villatoro and Katie Lutz. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected]. 

‘FUNCTIONALLY USELESS’ — An 18-foot privately funded fence constructed three years ago in Mission, Texas, is now "essentially orphaned, functionally useless" due to a federally constructed border barrier behind it, reports J. David Goodman of The New York Times. Plus, it’s at risk of falling over in a major flood, according to an engineering report commissioned by the Justice Department. That could redirect the Rio Grande and inadvertently make it part of Mexico, officials fear. In Arizona, the "wall" of shipping containers then-Gov. Doug Ducey installed has been dismantled, per Anita Snow of the Associated Press. Putting up the wall cost nearly $95 million in state funds; taking it down will cost another $76 million.  

HIGHER MIGRANT ARRESTS — Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) made more than 142,000 arrests of migrants between October 2021 and September 2022, reports Juliana Kim of NPR. The number is more than double the arrests in the previous fiscal year. Arrests of immigrants with no known criminal convictions tripled, which ICE said was a result of its agents helping Customs and Border Protection officers process migrants amid record apprehensions. [Michelle Hackman of The Wall Street Journal and Camilo Montoya-Galvez of CBS News first reported on the ICE numbers over the break.]  

STATE GUARD ASSISTANCE — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has activated the state’s National Guard to assist in handling the arrival of more than 700 mostly Cubans last week, reports Anthony Izaguirre of the Associated Press. In a statement, DeSantis said Florida will deploy airplanes, helicopters and marine patrols to the area "to support water interdictions and ensure the safety of migrants attempting to reach Florida through the Florida Straits." The move comes as more Cubans continue to arrive; a CBS Miami Team reports that 50 Cubans arrived in the Florida Keys on Sunday. The U.S. Coast Guard announced that it repatriated 273 Cuban migrants after intercepting boats off the Florida coast on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.  

PRIVACY CONCERNS — The Heritage Foundation targeted the cell phone data of nearly 30,000 migrants at more than 30 migrant aid shelters and Customs and Border Protection facilities, Pablo De La Rosa of Texas Public Radio reports. Heritage wrote about the January 2022 tracking in a report published last month. The report raises concerns about privacy, as well as about the targeting of aid organizations. "We should be proud, not angry, about the ways in which volunteer organizations have worked together with federal, state, and local officials to stand up a collaborative model of border management," said Aaron Reichlin-Melnick of the American Immigration Council. 

JOURNEYS — Readers of the Boston Globe submitted personal reflections related to immigrants and immigration, published as a collection of mini-essays edited by Teresa M. Hanafin. The stories, and their tellers, are diverse: Teachers and a police sergeant are among those whose essays appear alongside the words of immigrants and former refugees themselves. Give them a read. 

Thanks for reading,  

Dan