It didn’t take long for Joe Biden to begin erasing the Trump administration’s economic and safety strides. One of the first edicts under the new administration hobbles the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) while whittling away the resources needed to secure the U.S.-Mexico border.
USCIS spokesperson Matthew Bourke stated:
“U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services recently rescinded two 2018 policy memos related to the issuance of Notices to Appear when processing requests for immigration benefits. The agency was directed to rescind the relevant policy in a [Department of Homeland Security] memo issued Jan. 20.”
So on day one, Biden — armed with a Sharpie and a desk full of executive orders — rolled back parts of former President Donald Trump’s immigration policy, saying that officers may no longer seek deportations for illegals who commit drunk-driving offenses and assault and may not arrest illegal aliens already wanted for such crimes as drug trafficking, drunk driving, low-level assault, and sex crimes.
By the Numbers
The Center for Immigration Studies released a report detailing the type and frequency of illegal aliens’ crimes in 2018. What tops the list is probably not surprising to anyone:
- Driving While Intoxicated 10,322
- Assault and aggravated assault 7,192
- Drug trafficking 2,222
- Weapons 2,080
- Terroristic threats 246
Acting ICE Director Tae Johnson released a set of guidelines for ICE, which excuses any and all serious crimes committed by illegals in the past, specifically:
“Individuals incarcerated within federal, state, and local prisons and jails released on or after the issuance of this memorandum who have been convicted of an ‘aggravated felony,’ as that term is defined in section 101(a) (43) of the Immigration and Nationality Act at the time of conviction, and are determined to pose a threat to public safety.”
More understandably stated, ICE can arrest only those criminal illegal aliens who are already in the custody of authorities.
One ICE agent explained in the report, “With locals not cooperating on telling us about releases of deportable criminals we identify, we now need specific written agency approval to make any arrest of a felon once they are released. Even courthouse arrests are considered at large arrests, so we are dead in the water.”
Representative Henry Cuellar (D-TX) is ringing alarm bells and has called the White House to lodge a complaint. Cuellar’s district snuggles right up to the U.S.-Mexican border, and he is not happy with Biden’s broad-stroke brushing of immigration that affects his voters.
“There are policies that we had under President Obama that I think we need to look at and implement,” Cuellar suggested. “And in fact … President Obama actually deported more people than President Trump did.” Children are still separated from their “families,” but at least the left is coming clean on some immigration aspects.
But is this where governing is headed? Will policies be undone every four years on an embittered whim, or will American politicians learn to listen to their electorates? The federal government’s first responsibility is protecting the security of our nation. Biden’s reckless immigration and border edicts will end in tragedy: not for illegal aliens, but for American citizens.
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Read more from Sarah Cowgill.
