WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Lisa McClain (R-MI) penned a letter alongside 29 colleagues to urge the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to keep Title 42 in place and begin enforcing our nation’s immigration laws during the public health crisis.
“DHS’ handling of the coronavirus pandemic is atrocious and it’s past time the department begins to put the health of Americans first by following our nation’s immigration laws,” said Rep. McClain. “The Lambda variant is surging at our border and is putting Border Patrol agents and Americans’ safety at risk. If this administration gets rid of Title 42, the flood of illegal aliens at the border will cripple our already overwhelmed Border Patrol.”
Reps. Brian Mast (R-FL), Bob Gibbs (R-OH), Ann Wagner (R-MO), Stephanie Bice (R-OK), Fred Upton (R-MI), Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Mark Green (R-TN), Vern Buchanan (R-FL), Paul Gosar (R-AZ), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA), Yvette Herrell (R-NM), Louie Gohmert (R-TX), Tim Walberg (R-MI), Nicole Maliotakis (R-NY), Carlos Gimenez (R-FL), Greg Steube (R-FL), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Jody Hice (R-GA), Bill Johnson (R-OH), Buddy Carter (R-GA), Scott Franklin (R-FL), Randy Feenstra (R-IA), Glenn Grothman (R-WI), Jack Bergman (R-MI), Rick Crawford (R-AR), Mo Brooks (R-AL), Bill Huizenga (R-MI), Ben Cline (R-VA) and Matt Rosendale (R-MT) joined McClain’s letter.
For a copy of the letter, click here. The full text is below.
The Honorable Alejandro Mayorkas
Secretary of Homeland Security
United States Department of Homeland Security
2707 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave, SE
Washington, DC 20528
Dear Secretary Mayorkas:
We write to express our concerns with the Department of Homeland Security’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic at our southern border. Since January 20th, 2021, President Biden has repeatedly said that the current pandemic is a crisis, and all Americans must take steps to prevent the spread of the virus. This message from the President does not match your department’s actions.
Despite the pandemic, which the President continues to stress is a major threat, your department has reversed nearly all the strong border security measures of the previous administration. These decisions have not only led to the highest level of illegal immigration at our southwest border in recent history, but also opened the doors for COVID-infected individuals to enter our country.
As the Secretary of Homeland Security, we would think the Coronavirus pandemic would be a sensitive subject for you. Over the past year, we have lost more than 30 Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents to COVID-19. Even with vaccinations increasing across the United States, every illegal immigrant who crosses our border could be infected with COVID-19, leading toward a major outbreak in the United States.
The immediate issue with your decision to allow tens of thousands of illegal aliens into our country is the serious health risks associated with this surge in illegal immigration. Those crossing the border are infected with the Coronavirus, and many are not tested upon entry. Most of these individuals who are crossing our southern border are coming from countries with very high infection rates. The Lambda variant is also spiking in South America, where many of these migrants are coming from, putting our citizens at an even greater risk of serious infection. In the first two weeks of July alone, CBP confirmed that 135 illegal immigrants being held at the Rio Grande Valley crossing point tested positive for COVID-19.[1]
Your department is on the front lines of not only defending our country from drug traffickers, human smugglers and terrorists, but also in the fight to stop this virus. By securing our southern border, you can turn off the river of potential Coronavirus carriers from pouring into our nation.
We also urge you to keep Title 42, the public health order, in place to stem the flow of illegal immigrants into this country. If your department lifts Title 42, as many news outlets have reported, the border crisis will only worsen, and your department will again be putting the lives of Americans at risk.
With all this in mind, we ask your response to the following questions:
- Have you directly spoken with President Biden about reversing course on his open-southern-border policy? If not, why not?
- Will you recommend to the President that he maintain the Title 42 health order? If not, why not?
- Will you be demanding that President Biden and Vice President Harris visit an actual border facility where many of these illegal aliens are being held and often not tested for COVID-19? If not, why not?
Mr. Secretary, you took an oath to protect the United States. We are demanding that you uphold your pledge.
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