The Biden administration is coming under criticism for their immigration policy and handling of the situation at the U.S.- Mexico border. Even Former President Barack Obama and current Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas both recently said that Biden’s immigration policy is unsustainable. Newell spoke to Andrew Arthur of the Center for Immigration Studies about their problems with the policy and the issues it creates.
“Former President Obama said open borders are unsustainable. Of course the Biden administration pushed back on that comment. Why would Obama say what he said?” Newell asked.
“Maybe because of an off-the-record conversation with border agents down in Texas a few weeks back, Secretary Mayorkas said the same thing,” Arthur said. “It is unsustainable. We already have nearly two million aliens who have entered the United States that have been legally apprehended by the border patrol this year… the crime, the disorder, and everything else that comes with it is going to affect not just the United States but Mexico and our Central American partners.”
“I don't understand why we continue to do this word-smithing! Why don't we just go back to the law? It makes it so easy and it provides political cover for everybody…The Notice to Report document that we’re hearing about… does it really exist?” Newell asked .
“I went looking for this form. It doesn't exist,” Arthur said. “You can’t even find a copy of one on the internet. A colleague of mine was down at the San Antonio airport and asked people if he could look at theirs. Lawyers are trying to figure out what these things are. There's a government forum, the NTA, the Notice to Appear, that actually has legal consequences. It has to have the time, place and date of the hearing. If the alien fails to show up, the alien's going to be removed from the country. The Notice to Report form is immigration enforcement by the honor system and it’s just about as good as you would expect.”
“The whole notion of checks and balances in this country has run amok,” Newell said. “We just do what we want, when we want, and how we want based on our own ideology and it doesn't matter what Congress has said historically by passing laws or not.”
“The beginning of our conversation still rings true. If you just enforce the laws, that’s the easiest thing to do. If the American people believe this population of aliens is particularly deserving, they're going to speak to the representatives and they will grant them amnesty… the American people are probably the most big-hearted people, no matter what you hear in the media. If they deserve amnesty, they'll get amnesty, but that's not going to happen until you enforce the laws we already have,” Arthur replied.
“In respect to everything the government is trying to provide to those who are coming to this country, illegally or otherwise… they are getting free flights, free this, free that, and we can't get the sustenance necessary in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida as citizens. I just don't understand the duplicity of all of this. We have almost 40 million people in this country living below the federally identified poverty level!” Newell said.
“That really is the worst part of the current border policy and the Biden administration. Most of the individuals who come into the United States are poorly educated and they have to work in the inner city. Young minority groups and immigrants, who have entered legally, have not yet adjusted to life in this country and that's been true in the immigration laws since 1952. We seem to have forgotten all that. We've forgotten the fact that we do need to provide for disadvantaged people in the United States. I think the reason for that is the people working in the White House probably never had a real job,” Arthur said.
Hear the entire interview in the audio clip below.
