The crisis on the southern U.S. border continues to burn out of control as unaccompanied minors are held in facilities meant for a fraction of the current volume of detainees. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris seem to be uninterested in making the tough decisions necessary to bring the situation under control.
According to Breitbart, the situation inspired a group of 11 former chief patrol agents of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency to write a joint letter to Congress in an effort to relay their concerns over what’s happening at the border right now, even labeling it a humanitarian crisis.
What did they say?
It should be noted that the former CBP agents who penned the letter have over 100 years of combined experience working in various capacities within the agency that oversees border security, with at least four of them former in high-level positions.
In the letter, they raised concerns about the near future of the crisis and warned that at the current rate, it’s on track to become the most impactful and dangerous border security situation in United States history. They also blamed Biden’s policies for what’s happening, without mentioning his name directly.
“However, the change in administrations, strong signals in policy changes and security postures at the border has created a hyper-acceleration in the number of undocumented migrants seeking to enter the United States,” they wrote.
Though many high-profile Democrats, like Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) continue to blame the administration of former President Donald Trump for the current crisis, it’s logical and clear to many that the situation was exacerbated by Biden’s promises on the campaign trail to open access to the country along with his early decisions to roll back his predecessor’s aggressive policies on border security.
The experienced border officials who wrote the letter have worked under a number of past presidential administrations and, to date, is one of the strongest non-partisan calls for Congress — or somebody — to take action to begin bringing the situation under control.
What’s the solution?
The letter wasn’t simply a complaint about the current border crisis, rather, it offered a number of suggestions for Congress to tackle the issue, as it seems they’re either struggling to do so or don’t have the political courage to make certain choices, as many of those choices would fly directly in the face of Biden and Harris’ campaign promises.
In the first suggestion, the former CBP officials call on Congress to get involved in the matter, noting that it has been some 25 years since Congress intervened on immigration issues. Immigration policy has largely been handled by presidents in that time frame.
Secondly, they called on Congress to listen to those with experience on the matter, like those who wrote the letter. They said that by listening to seasoned border security veterans, it can ensure that the right policies are put in place while navigating the budgetary consequences involved.
Speaking of budgetary issues, their last bit of guidance implored the administration to not let money issues get in the way of good policy execution, noting that it’s one of the most common causes of breaking down what would otherwise be sound policy moves. They added that federal law enforcement agencies tasked with border security are currently underfunded.
At this point, the time has come for Congress to bite the bullet and make things happen as the Biden administration seems unwilling to do so, not to mention the fact that this crisis likely hasn’t even peaked yet.
The post Former US Border Patrol chief patrol agents publish joint letter to Congress over escalating crisis first appeared on Conservative Institute.
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