The Quote Below—More Misinformation from the Media
“President Joe Biden kicked off his administration with lofty goals to revamp America’s immigration system, but with the end of the year approaching, lawsuits and infighting have stalled policy changes, officials have fielded criticism from allies and critics over management of the US southern border. . . .
“The administration’s best-case scenario is a “totally mixed bag,” said Jorge Loweree, policy director at the American Immigration Council. “And worst case is an effective continuation of what Trump wanted.”. . .
“Republicans have continued to seize on the record number of border arrests and have filed lawsuits challenging policy changes, hampering the administration in its attempt to execute some of its pledges.
“Most notably, a federal judge in Texas blocked the termination of a Trump-era border policy Illegal alien advocates a forcing non-Mexican migrants to stay in Mexico until their US immigration court dates and required the administration to bring back the controversial program it opposes and still seeks to end.
“Another Trump-era border policy that immigrant advocates and the United Nations have urged the Biden administration to ditch also remains in effect. A public health authority, invoked at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, allows authorities to turn away migrants encountered at the US southern border, effectively barring them from claiming asylum.
“When asked about the authority, known as Title 42, the Biden administration has referred to the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention, which, according to a White House spokesperson, deems it necessary given the Delta and Omicron variants. . . .
“Immigrant advocates — who expected significant changes after four years of curtailed immigration under then-President Donald Trump – have . . . voiced concern and disappointment to officials over the administration’s actions in numerous discussions.
“The Biden campaign promised to welcome people with dignity, and instead we have returned to Trump policies,” said Karen Tumlin, attorney, founder and director of Justice Action Center, in a call with reporters. ‘This is not the change millions sought when Biden was elected.’. . .
“Despite various setbacks, the Biden administration has made some inroads on its immigration agenda, including changing enforcement guidelines to prioritize certain undocumented immigrants for arrest and deportation, ending mass worksite enforcement, halting border wall construction and no longer applying controversial rules, like the Trump-era public charge regulation that made it more difficult for immigrants to obtain legal status if they used some public benefits. . . .“– Biden Administration Results in More of the Same Trump Policies, Priscilla Alvarez, CNN, 12/30/21 [Link]
Fact Check of Above Quote: Illegal alien advocates and their media enablers are working mightily to downplay the unfolding disaster of the Biden Administration’s border policies. This CNN article is one example. It concedes in passing the “record number” of border arrests, while downplaying it as a concern that Republicans are “seizing” for political advantage. Polls show that it’s not just Republicans, but Americans in general, who see this as a real problem.
To deflect attention from that concern, media spin masters are peddling the idea that Biden hasn’t gone far enough with his policies, that he is still doing pretty much what Trump did. The implied remedy is that he should push much harder for his pro-illegal alien agenda. As examples of keep Trump policies, the CNN article cites the “Remain in Mexico” policy and Title 42. The reality is that Biden tried to get rid of “Remain in Mexico” and only reinstated it, as this article concedes, because of a federal court order. The Biden Administration has hobbled the program as much as possible and is still trying to repeal it. Title 42 remains in place because the administration doesn’t want to appear weak on Covid control, but it enforces the provision with little zeal.
The CNN article does concede, with gross understatement, that the administration has made “some inroads” toward the virtual open border sought by illegal alien advocates. It goes on to list some of those steps which have caused a stampede of illegal aliens over our border. It deceives by claiming that the administration only “prioritized” enforcement. The reality is that it has placed large numbers of illegal aliens off-limits to arrest and deportation. Thanks to Biden’s policies, immigration law enforcement agencies are hamstrung and demoralized.
Illegal alien advocates pretend to be hurting when they have most of what they want. They’ll keep on pretending until they get everything.