Dems Doom Bill to Test Migrants for COVID

The worsening migrant crisis on our southern border is being exacerbated by the global COVID-19 pandemic and by the uncertainty of just how many migrants coming into the U.S. are infected and how many are even being tested.

At its winter meeting recently, the National Sheriffs’ Association declared that as many as half of illegal migrants crossing the border are COVID positive. “In any other construct,” the Association said, “infection rates that high would be cause for alarm by public health officials. Yet, we are currently engaging in policies that have potentially opened, rather than restricted, undocumented traffic into the U.S.”

One such hot spot of undocumented traffic is Brownsville, Texas, whose bus station has become a dumping ground for Border Patrol officials to drop off untested illegal migrants. On January 25, the city, on its own, began testing for COVID. As of March 3, a total of 108 had tested positive. Because the city has no authority to do anything else, they could only urge the infected migrants to quarantine and social distance prior to boarding buses for their ultimate destinations somewhere in America.

Responding to numerous reports of untested illegals being released, Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA) this week introduced the Requiring Every Alien to Receive a COVID-19 Test (REACT) Act, which would mandate that all migrants crossing the border illegally receive a negative test prior to release. On the floor of the House Tuesday night she said:

This week, I traveled to El Paso, Texas, to meet with CBP agents and officers. I saw firsthand the crisis they are facing, and I believe it is our job in Congress to address it and assist them. Approximately 50% of agents have tested positive for COVID-19, and very few migrants are being tested. My REACT Act would require that every migrant released from CBP or ICE custody is tested and receives a negative test. Border security and immigration is not an issue that only affects border states, it affects every community across the country. By ensuring that individuals entering the country are negative for COVID-19, we can help keep our communities safe and healthy.

The Democratic House voted down her bill.

For more, see Breitbart News.

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