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CBP Agent Addresses Border Patrol Authorities Cutting Concertina Wire to Allow Migrants Into the U.S.

VP of the National Border Patrol Council says once migrants reach the fence, they're already on U.S. soil and agents are required to arrest them

Published: October 03, 2023
  |   By Adrian Norman

Agents with the U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP) have come under fire after multiple videos surfaced on social media showing them cutting concertina wire placed as a barrier along the U.S. southern border to stop the flow of migrants.

Border Patrol agents are being blamed for inflaming the crisis by critics who say agents are abdicating their duty to protect the U.S. when they allow migrants access through the fencing.

Some individuals on social media have raised eyebrows, going so far as to proclaim the agents are committing treason.

In reality, the agents are acting in accordance with federal regulations.

“People need to understand the law,” says Art Del Cueto, a Border Patrol agent, vice-president of the National Border Patrol Council (NBPC), and host of The Green Line podcast.

Del Cueto — who speaks on behalf of the NBPC, not the federal government — explained in a recent video that once migrants have reached the concertina wire, they’re already inside the U.S., which means agents are required to take them into custody.

In the El Paso sector, the U.S. southern border with Mexico lies in the middle of the Rio Grande. Once migrants have touched the shore after departing from Mexico, they’ve already officially crossed into the U.S. — before they reach the concertina wire. Border Patrol agents have no viable legal options for deterrence at that point.

During an interview with Timcast News, Del Cueto referenced a video shared to social media featuring a woman who had put cardboard on her back to allow her and her daughter to crawl under the razor wire fencing, saying, “That’s the big point. They’re already in the United States.”

Morale among agents is still low as the border crisis drags on. Under the Biden administration, more than 5.5 million illegal aliens have entered the U.S., with more than 2.8 million encounters in fiscal year 2023 alone.

Del Cueto says that attacking Border Patrol agents carrying out their duties in accordance with the law is neither a solution, nor helping to improve their outlook.

“I know people are upset about it, and it’s hard to argue with people that already have their mind set on something. And their mindset is, these people shouldn’t cross. Well, I agree,” he said. “They need to cross a port of entry. But once they’re in illegally, the agent has to do their job and arrest them. They’re already on U.S. soil.”

Del Cueto suggested any finger pointing should be directed toward senior levels of the Biden administration, which has enacted policies that have created America’s latest border crisis.

“I think it’s caused by the rhetoric of this administration,” he explained.

“President Biden ran his campaign and said, ‘Look, I’m gonna allow people to come across,’ pretty much, that’s what a lot of people understood from his rhetoric,” Del Cueto remarked. “And day one of this administration, day one is when the large group started to come across illegally into the United States.”

He added, “I was witness to some of these individuals that would actually, blatantly say, ‘The reason I’m doing it is because I can. Your president said I could and you guys can’t do nothing about it.’ That was the actual verbiage from some of the individuals coming across, day one.”

High profile social media accounts engaging in the recent spate of anti-Border Patrol rhetoric could be endangering agents, Del Cueto says.

“I understand that some people are upset at different issues and things that the government does at times. But unfortunately, you’re gonna get a base of individuals that is also going to turn around and just start blaming agents for it,” he said, blasting the lack of high-profile people explaining how the law works, and that agents are following the law.

In a separate post, Del Cueto called on people to research federal immigration and detention policies before launching attacks against Border Patrol agents.

Democrats who once championed their support of “sanctuary cities” are now pressuring the federal government for assistance, and to craft stronger border control policies, as jurisdictions like Chicago and New York are now starting to bear the brunt of the crisis.

Arizona lawmakers recently warned President Joe Biden that ignoring the crisis and not visiting the border would not be a politically feasible option.

“It’s well past time for President Biden to see the border crisis firsthand and for the Administration to do its job, secure the border, and keep Arizona safe,” said Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ). “While he’s in Arizona, I’m calling on him to visit the border to actually understand how our communities shoulder the burden of his Administration’s failure to address this crisis — and then follow the law to quickly provide our communities the long-overdue resources they need to stay safe and secure.”

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