On MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” broadcast Friday, Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) said President Joe Biden could unilaterally close the border, something President Obama did with Title VIII. He said the same thing should be done.
After noting that Biden had said he was determining whether he had the legal authority to close the border through presidential action, co-host Jonathan Lemire said, “The president has the authority to do this.” Do you understand that there is, and do you think the president has the authority to do that?” should? “
Mr. Cuellar replied: “Yes, he has the authority and he should do it. I’ll tell you what, when Trump implemented Title 42, he signed an executive order based on the law entitled Title 42. We now have Title 8 quick removal, which President Obama used for years without an executive order. But he can use it. He can’t do everything. But there are some things you can do with an executive order. And if someone files a lawsuit, let’s see what happens then.”
He added, “We’ve added billions of dollars to the Department of Homeland Security, we’ve added more Border Patrol personnel, we’ve added technology and more…and we need to make sure that doesn’t stop. Now that we’re running low, let’s continue to use our resources and, again, let the things that are supposed to come in come in. But the things that aren’t supposed to come in, let’s go ahead and keep them and let them go. Detain them and then deport them back to their country. That’s what Secretary Jae Johnson does. [did] that. I know Secretary Mayorkas can do that too. ”
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