The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency has a program that allows asylum seekers to enter the U.S. freely, usually while provided with nothing more than a smartphone app to track their travels as they go. That program is called “Alternatives to Detention,” and, not surprisingly, the Biden administration is making full use of it.
In August, 2020, during the Trump administration, there were about 86,000 migrants in ATD. By June of 2021, over 100,000 migrants had been enrolled and the fall saw a rapid increase. From November 20 to December 18, for example, more than 10,000 migrants were added, bringing the total to a record 150,755.
Note that, as John Binder of Breitbart News writes: “Border crossers and illegal aliens placed into ATD are not the total number of border crossers and illegal aliens released into the U.S. interior by the Biden administration. While nearly two million border crossers arrived at the southern border last year, Biden has released more than 530,000 into the U.S. interior, according to the latest estimates.”
As for those migrants saddled with a troublesome app, they still overwhelmingly prefer ATD to detention for obvious reasons. Immigration lawyers, however, continue to complain, in the words of one researcher, of “frequent and disruptive virtual check-ins and feeling constantly watched by the government.”
The migrants really should rest easy. We seriously doubt Joe Biden is constantly watching anyone who’s here illegally.
For more, see Border Report.