In a 180-degree turn, the Biden administration is paving the way for the construction of a new border wall in Texas, waiving 26 federal laws to allow the border wall’s construction.
Amid the worst border crisis in U.S. history, the administration is now taking up the same Trump-era policy it previously deemed racist.
Administration officials have been laissez-faire regarding border security, doing little to quell the flow of more than 7.6 million illegal aliens into the U.S. since President Joe Biden took office in 2021.
As the crisis has unfolded, thousands of migrants have flooded into border towns each day, prompting officials in Arizona, Texas, and Florida to transport migrants to cities and states that had previously declared themselves to be “sanctuary” areas that would welcome illegal aliens with open arms.
Having received tens of thousands of migrants, areas like Chicago and New York City have been unable to cope with the strain the influx has placed on local officials and workers in facilities that provide food and shelter.
Following a recent arrival of 27 buses, Chicago has now received more than 15,000 migrants.
In New York, more than 118,400 migrants have arrived since the spring of 2022.
At least 10,500 migrants have been sent to the District of Columbia.
New York City declared a state of emergency a year ago and has since pleaded with the Biden administration to provide additional resources. Mayor Eric Adams recently estimated the price tag for the crisis will reach $12 billion over the next three years.
Washington D.C. also declared an emergency over the migrant crisis, while just last week Chicago officials warned Biden that the migrant surge is at a breaking point. Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker sent Biden a letter in recent days pleading with the president about the “enormous strain” the crisis has placed on state resources.
“Mr. President, I urge you, [U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro] Mayorkas, and the rest of your administration to take swift action and intervene on our behalf and on behalf of the other affected states and their residents,” Pritzker continued, “as well as on behalf of the tens of thousands of asylum seekers who undertook a dangerous and difficult journey in hopes of attaining public safety and forging a better life for themselves and their families.”
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has posted an announcement on the U.S. Federal Registry with details about the border wall construction in Starr County, Texas, an area with a high number of illegal crossings.
Mayorkas said in the announcement, “There is presently an acute and immediate need to construct physical barriers and roads in the vicinity of the border of the United States in order to prevent unlawful entries into the United States,” while pledging DHS will take “immediate action” to construct the new wall.
Environmental activists scoffed at the announcement, calling the Biden administration’s new border wall construction a “horrific step backwards.”
Disappointed, but not surprised. When Biden was first elected, he broke his promise to cease border wall construction in the RGV. What's painful is knowing that these will go through wildlife refuges, as 85% of residents already have limited access to green spaces. https://t.co/8LC3Tfowkj
— Voces Unidas RGV (@VocesUnidasRGV) October 4, 2023
