Senate Republicans are calling on Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to explain his plan for a backdoor “mass amnesty” for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants.
Federal data released this week reveals a disturbing trend in which migrants released into the U.S. under President Joe Biden’s term are increasingly having their deportation proceedings terminated even though they have not been granted asylum.
“Under the Biden administration, so far, [of migrants] “The number of refugees allowed to remain in the country rose to 77 percent, while only 22 percent were ordered deported,” wrote researchers from Syracuse University’s Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC).
in letterSen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) is leading a group of 21 Senate Republicans calling on Mayorkas and Attorney General Merrick Garland to answer questions about the mass dismissal of migrant deportation cases and ensure migrants can stay in the U.S.
“We are writing to you today regarding recent reports of the Biden Administration’s purported ‘mass amnesty’ for illegal immigrants… detailing how the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) has dismissed over 350,000 deportation cases since 2022 under the guise of prosecutorial discretion,” the senators wrote.
According to the report: The administration has rejected deportation proceedings for hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants who the Biden administration determined have no criminal records and are not considered a threat to national security. This measure allows these people to remain in the United States indefinitely without going through the due legal process necessary to approve or deny their asylum claims. Such practices undermine the integrity of our immigration system and are an affront to all people pursuing legal paths to the United States. [Emphasis added]
…
This administration’s approach has consistently been to downplay the severity of the border crisis, first denying its existence, then grudgingly acknowledging it, and now attempting to address it with inadequate measures. Repeated failures of border control under your leadership have led to an unprecedented backlog of 3.5 million asylum applications.This places a huge strain on our immigration system and increases the risk of criminal activity by illegal immigrants. [Emphasis added]
The senators are demanding details about how many of the rejected deportation cases involved illegal immigrants traveling between ports of entry on the southern border, how the administration plans to reduce the immigration court backlog, and whether the rejected deportation cases involved immigrants with criminal records.
“The American people deserve transparency and accountability regarding the Administration’s immigration and border security response,” they wrote. “The current situation on the southern border is unacceptable and requires immediate and effective solutions.”
Senators Jim Risch (R-ID), Steve Daines (R-MT), Ted Cruz (R-TX), John Hoeven (R-ND), Mike Lee (R-UT), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), John Cornyn (R-TX), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Mike Crapo (R-ID), and Marsha Blackburn (R-IL). Senators who signed Senator Cramer’s letter were Senators Ted Budd (R-NC), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Ron Johnson (R-WI), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Tim Scott (R-SC) and Roger Wicker (R-MS).
Senators John Thune (R-SD), J.D. Vance (R-OH), and Josh Hawley (R-MO) also sent similar letters to Governor Mayorkas regarding the mass dismissal of deportation cases.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter. here.
