The Biden administration has further intensified its fight with state governments over contradicting approaches to the immigration crisis, filing a lawsuit against Texas Governor Greg Abbott. Washington specifically wants to nullify his Executive Order GA-37, which, as the Biden administration argues, is harmful and unconstitutional.
The order in question severely limits federal authorities' ability to transport and release illegal migrants in Texas, especially through the use of federally-contracted "non-governmental partners". However, Abbott is defending the decision as having Texans' best interests in mind in terms of protecting them against migrants spreading coronavirus. Political commentators and journalists suggest that Abbott's executive order was indeed necessary in light of the current administration's policies.
Fighting State Governors Instead of Upholding Federal Laws
The shift in US immigration policy brought about by President Joe Biden was apparent on his first day in office, when he rescinded or halted most of Donald Trump's executive orders and initiatives related to immigration. So, it's no wonder (despite how POTUS played it in one of his press conferences) that many of the migrants rushed to the US-Mexico border when Biden took the Oval Office.
According to some estimates, as many as two million migrants, mostly from Central American countries, have already crossed the border illegally in 2021 – as a direct result of Biden's Open Borders” policy, Alexandra Datig, a political commentator and publisher of Front Page Index, says.
"Just to offer some perspective, that number represents half of the legal residents in the city of Los Angeles, the second largest city in the US," Datig adds.
Still, the White House seems untroubled by these numbers, which some commentators say represent a record high. While Biden speaks of resolving the root cause of immigration by making life better in the migrants' countries of origin, his appointee in the matters of the immigration crisis, Vice President Kamala Harris, had been avoiding going to the border for months unlike some Republican lawmakers, who slammed the administration for failing to handle the situation.
In the latest turn of events, Biden's DoJ is suing Abbott, one of the country's most outspoken Republican governors, for standing up to Washington's approach and dealing with what he perceives as a threat to his state. This situation is blatantly absurd, a former candidate for the US Senate, and an investigative journalist, Mark Dankof says, questioning the White House's ability to evaluate the situation at the border, where detention facilities are overcrowded with potential COVID carriers.
"Biden’s DOJ is being disingenuous in its analysis of the situation with migrants at the Texas-Mexico border and the subsequent release of illegals into both Texas and elsewhere," Dankof says.
The former Senate hopeful suggests that Biden and his team should focus on upholding the country's immigration laws rather than suing Texas for allegedly going against the constitution in a declared attempt to protect its residents from coronavirus. The US has "border law enforcement that is no law enforcement in any sense of the word" right now, Dankof notes, adding that Biden and the Democrats' immigration policy looks more like "a wholesale amnesty for illegals".
Democrats' Plan for Amnesty and Citizenship?
By signing Executive Order GA-37, Abbott has taken charge of his state amid what he sees as an "unmitigated, out of control rise in illegal border crossings", political commentator Alexandra Datig says. The move was a direct result of Biden's "failing" immigration policy, she adds. Abbott himself did not hide his frustration with how the administration has been dealing with the influx of illegal border-crossers.
"It is clear that the Biden Administration fundamentally misunderstands what is truly happening at the Texas-Mexico border. The current crisis at our southern border, including the overcrowding of immigration facilities and the devastating spread of COVID-19 that the influx of non-citizens is causing, is entirely the creation of the Biden Administration and its failed immigration policies," Abbott said in his official response to the DoJ's demand to rescind Order 37.
The "Catch and Release" policy of the federal authorities is only part of the problem – the Democrats reportedly seek to give amnesty along with citizenship to millions of illegal aliens, Mark Dankof says. These changes are reportedly being pushed forward as a part of the so-called "Infrastructure Package" – Biden and the Democratic Party's megaproject, partially opposed by Republicans.
However, the GOP still has enough leverage to stop this initiative in its tracks. While the Republicans are negotiating a smaller part of Biden's infrastructure reform with the Democrats, they have so far completely rejected the bigger one, which contains large government spending allocations and tax hikes, and reportedly pardons for illegal immigrants. With blocking 50 votes in the split Senate, they have the capability to filibuster the bill, if they deem it dangerous. The Democrats, in turn, are seeking ways around the filibuster, while Biden is insisting on negotiating an agreement with the GOP that would bring them on board with the infrastructure reform.