House Speaker Mike Johnson urged President Biden to take executive action to address the crisis at the southern border. In a letter sent on Thursday, Johnson recalled that negotiations in the Senate have been stalled for months. Worse still, he argued that by suspending Senate activities for the remainder of the year, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer eliminated any possibility of any legislative action – including approval of the Republican bill HR2, which already has a half sanction-.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has urged President Biden to take executive action to address the crisis at the southern border. In a letter sent on Thursday, Johnson highlighted the months-long stalemate in Senate negotiations. Worse still, he expressed further concern that Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's decision to suspend Senate activities for the remainder of the year has obliterated any chance of legislative action. This includes the potential approval of the Republican bill HR2, which has already received partial sanction.
The border is in crisis.
The House passed H.R. 2 more than six months ago, but Senate Democrats left town without taking any action.
Mr. President—border security starts with you. It’s time to take action today to secure the border.
Read my full letter ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/rW0Z3zs1HL
— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) December 21, 2023
In regards to the crisis, Johnson found a clear culprit: "You have clearly undermined America's sovereignty and security." In November it was learned that since Biden took office, nearly 10 million illegal immigrants had entered the country, including those who managed to evade controls. In September of this year, CBP reported that the monthly number had stood at 269,735 encounters, the highest figure so far. In October, 240,988 encounters were recorded on the southern border. Although there is still no official data for November and December, official sources told Fox News that 200,000 encounters were recorded in this last month.
Urgent federal measures
Johnson argued in his letter to the president that "significant action" had to be taken quickly: "It must start now, and it must start with you."
Among the recommended measures, the speaker included eliminating the 'catch and release' policy - to, instead, detain or return those who enter the country illegally - and granting parole on a case-by-case basis, and not allocating it to entire groups of foreigners .
He also recommended expediting the immediate expulsion and resuming the reconstruction of the border wall - although the Biden Administration has been forced to continue building parts of the wall, of which it would also have been secretly selling unused pieces of material.
Given the inactivity of the Government and Congress, local authorities have been taking measures into their own hands. This includes both governors, as in the case of Texas and Arizona, and other mayors, including those in New York and Chicago. The Border Patrol itself recognized that it lacks the necessary personnel to deal with the entry of immigrants and had to close entry points to redirect its resources.
Blinken will travel to Mexico
Among his advice to the president, Johnson included the demand that he resume or create new agreements with Mexico. Above all, reinstate the Remain in Mexico policy.
This request could be heard, even if at least in part: the Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, will meet with the Mexican president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, to discuss the migration crisis. This was reported by the spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, John Kirby, in words reported by EFE. Kirby did not specify, at this time, the date of the meeting or give details about its agenda.
The Government spokesperson also maintained that in a call yesterday, Biden and López Obrador agreed that they should take urgent measures to reopen the entry points on the common border.
