Humanitarian and Security Crisis at Southern Border Reaches 'Breaking Point'

"Illegal Immigration Hits 12-Year High; More than 76,000 Migrants Cross in February

The U.S. Border Patrol is currently encountering illegal immigration at the highest rates since 2007, according to new data. In fact, in February more than double the level of migrants crossed the border without authorization compared to the same period last year, approaching the largest numbers seen in any February in the last 12 years, The New York Times reported.

“The truth is that the politics and policies of open borders have failed the American people. Our broken system endures, and the ongoing humanitarian and security crisis at our Southwest Border leaves many minors and families at extreme risk of being exploited by traffickers, human smugglers, gangs, and other nefarious actors seeking to profit at their expense,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen M. Nielsen. “Activist courts, congressional inaction, and criminals intent on breaking our laws stand in the way of confronting illegal and uncontrolled migration threatening our safety and security. What was a crisis, is now a full-fledged emergency.”

“This cannot be a partisan issue,” Nielsen continued. “Every DHS Secretary since the Department’s inception has sounded the alarm about our unsecured border and its consequences. The American people and our law enforcement personnel rightfully demand effective border security: building the wall, strengthening our laws, and giving the men and women serving on the front lines the tools and resources they need to keep Americans safe. To that end, this Department pledges our unwavering resolve to confronting present and ever-evolving future threats to our national security at our Southwest Border.”

..."Border security

DHS Delivers Northern Border Threat Analysis Report to Congress

"The U.S. Department of Homeland Security delivered to the Congress the Northern Border Threat Analysis Report describing the current threat landscape on the U.S.-Canada border and analyzing national security and other threats across the air, land, and maritime domains. The report was prepared in accordance with the reporting requirements of the Northern Border Security Review Act....

This report offers a preliminary description of the Department’s capabilities and gaps for our operations on the Northern border. DHS intends to build on the preliminary assessment offered in this report by updating its Northern border strategy and writing a corresponding implementation plan. The updated strategy will include measures that will allow DHS to evaluate progress toward addressing capability gaps on the Northern border. Upon completion, these documents will enable DHS to begin a formal capability assessment and generate requirements which will guide the Department’s approach to making investments that will make the U.S.-Canada border more secure..."
Northern border

Statement by Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly on Southwest Border Security

"Today, U.S. Customs and Border Protection is releasing illegal border crossing data through the month of February and the numbers show an unprecedented decline in traffic. From January to February, the flow of illegal border crossings as measured by apprehensions and the prevention of inadmissible persons at our southern border dropped by 40 percent.

The drop in apprehensions shows a marked change in trends. Since the Administration’s implementation of Executive Orders to enforce immigration laws, apprehensions and inadmissible activity is trending toward the lowest monthly total in at least the last five years. This change in the trend line is especially significant because CBP historically sees a 10-20 percent increase in apprehensions of illegal immigrants from January to February.  Instead, this year we saw a drop from 31,578 to 18,762 persons - a 40 percent decline..."
Southwest border security

Fact Sheet: Executive Order: Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements

"Federal immigration law both imposes the responsibility and provides the means for the federal government, in cooperation with the states, to secure the nation's borders. The purpose of this order is to direct executive departments and agencies to deploy all lawful means to secure the nation's southern border with Mexico, to prevent further illegal immigration into the United States, and to repatriate illegal aliens swiftly, consistently, and humanely.

This includes, among other provisions, establishing operational control of the border, establishing and controlling a physical barrier, detaining illegal aliens at or near the border, ending the practice of “catch and release,” and returning aliens to the territory from which they came pending formal proceedings.

This order also directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to hire an additional 5,000 border agents and to empower state and local law enforcement to support federal enforcement of immigration law, to the maximum extent permitted by law, and to ensure that prosecution guidelines place a high priority on crimes having a nexus to our southern border.

Authorities

This executive order and its implementation is grounded in authorities vested in the President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.) (INA), the Secure Fence Act of 2006 (Public Law 109 367) (Secure Fence Act), and the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (Public Law 104 208 Div. C) (IIRIRA), in furtherance of the safety and territorial integrity of the United States as well as responsibilities to ensure that the nation's immigration laws are faithfully executed...."
Border security

Q&A: DHS Implementation of the Executive Order on Border Security and Immigration Enforcement

"On February 20, 2017, Secretary John Kelly signed a memorandum implementing the president’s Executive Order entitled “Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements,” issued on January 25, 2017. This document is designed to answer some frequently asked questions about how the Department will operationally implement the guidance provided by the president’s order.

Q1. What is CBP currently doing as part of the construction of the wall?

A1. CBP is taking immediate action in response to the president’s executive order. We have identified locations near El Paso, Texas, Tucson, Arizona, and El Centro, California, where we will build a wall in areas where the fence or old brittle landing-mat fencing are no longer effective.

The Border Patrol is also in the midst of an operational assessment, which will identify priority areas where CBP can build a wall or similar physical barrier on the border where it currently does not exist...."
DHS and border security

Secretary Kelly Issues Implementation Memoranda on Border Security and Interior Enforcement Executive Orders

"Today, Secretary John Kelly issued two memoranda to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) workforce providing further direction to implement the recent executive orders on border security and enforcement of the immigration laws.

In accordance with the Department’s commitment to be transparent with the American people, and to more effectively implement policies and practices that serve the national interest and protect the homeland, consolidated information regarding DHS operations in relation to the executive orders is available at www.dhs.gov/executive-orders-protecting-homeland..."

DHS Border security

Border Security: Immigration Enforcement Between Ports of Entry

"Border enforcement is a core element of the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS’s) effort to control illegal migration, with the U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) within the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) as the lead agency along most of the border. Border enforcement has been an ongoing subject of congressional interest since the 1970s, when illegal immigration to the United States first registered as a serious national problem; and border security has received additional attention in the decade following the terrorist attacks of 2001..."
Border Security: Immigration Enforcement Between Ports of Entry

Progress in Implementing New Security Measures Along the Southwest Border
" U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano announced today that Predator Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) flights will begin out of Corpus Christi, Texas, beginning on Wednesday, Sept.1. With the deployment of an UAS in Texas, DHS unmanned aerial capabilities will now cover the Southwest Border—from the El Centro Sector in California all the way to the Gulf of Mexico in Texas—providing critical aerial surveillance assistance to personnel on the ground.

The new, border-wide use of the Predator aircraft, comes on the heels of the recently passed Southwest border security supplemental legislation, which will provide two additional UASs that will bolster these newly expanded operations..."