"There is no open border in El Paso," said El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego, who explained that migrants turn themselves in to Border Patrol for orderly processing. "… Humanitarianism and security are not a binary choice. It is the federal government’s responsibility to do both." 

Speaking of the federal government’s purview, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) continues to challenge it. On Monday, Abbott named Mike Banks, a longtime and recently retired CBP agent, the state’s "border czar," per Ryan Autullo of the Austin American-Statesman. 

Yes, migration at the southern border presents urgent challenges. No, politicizing them is not going to solve them. We have better ideas.  

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 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]. 

LABOR SOLUTIONS — "America is running out of working-age adults," writes Boston Globe columnist Kara Miller. The solution: Increase legal immigration. (Yes, this may sound familiar.) Steve Stivers, President and CEO of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, agrees, as Mike Kallmeyer reports in Spectrum News 1. On a global scale, a trio of experts write in Insider that "if American policymakers can keep the door open to new residents, the US will be one of the few industrialized nations that won't have to contend with a shrinking population, which could prove a decisive factor in its race against China for dominance in the global economy." 

LONG, RISKY JOURNEY — A team at Reuters spoke with some of the hundreds of Afghans who have tried to reach the U.S. via a far too roundabout journey. It begins with a humanitarian visa for Brazil, "one of the few remaining exit routes for Afghans fleeing Taliban rule," and continues across at least 11 countries by land to reach the U.S.-Mexico border — with no guarantee of asylum. We can and must do more to assist Afghan refugees.  

REMITTANCES — The money Mexican migrants sent home to their families grew by 13.4% last year, to a total of $58.5 billion, according to Mexico’s central bank. "Remittances now surpass almost all other sources of the country’s foreign income, including tourism, oil exports and most manufacturing exports," per the Associated Press. Remittances are a good reason to nurture bilateral labor agreements, as we’ve recently noted. 

UNDER PRESSURE — With Haiti among the countries covered by President Biden’s recently expanded humanitarian parole program, Haitian Americans are feeling intense pressure to sponsor people still in Haiti, reports Brian Ellsworth of Reuters. "Desperation to leave has grown in Haiti amid a political crisis and a spike in violence that most recently has included a wave of killings of policemen," Ellsworth writes. Separately, in Vox, Sigal Samuel analyzes the step-by-step process to sponsor refugees under the new Welcome Corps program. 

Thanks for reading,  

Dan 

P.S. Nika Streletskaya, age 7, is "painting her way through war," reports Tatiana Christy in Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty. The artwork helps her cope and evokes empathy — and is stunning, I think you’ll agree. Nika’s paintings will be exhibited this month, marking the first anniversary of the Russian invasion, thanks to the Open Heart Fund.