According to the letter, first obtained by Breitbart News, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Immigration Subcommittee Chairman Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) are seeking an explanation for how taxpayer money is being used to detain illegal immigrants through the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
The July 24 letter, addressed to Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) Director Robin Dan-Marcos and Acting Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Adrian Todman, addresses the plight of Americans struggling to achieve their dreams of homeownership under the Biden-Harris Administration. The lawmakers note that part of the Judiciary Committee’s mandate is to oversee the Biden-Harris Administration’s “enforcement of federal immigration law and implementation of policies that prioritize undocumented immigrants and refugees over U.S. citizens and other lawful residents.”
“This oversight will also include the Committee’s investigation of the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR),” the letter states, with Jordan and McClintock formally requesting information about whether HHS ORR coordinated with both the State Department and HUD regarding the use of taxpayer dollars to cover the housing costs of “refugees and other foreign nationals” rather than U.S. citizens.
Jordan and McClintock cite a report that claims the U.S. faces a “shortage of approximately 3.2 million housing units — not enough housing to keep up with the growth in the number of households” and lays out the harsh reality of the Biden-Harris economy.
They also cited a report that the housing market is “the toughest in a generation,” noting that half of U.S. renters are struggling to pay rising rents. Meanwhile, the Biden-Harris administration continues to allow illegal immigrants to enter the U.S., a number that the letter estimates to be at least 5.3 million. The lawmakers also noted that there are at least 1.9 million “fugitives” who evade Border Patrol and law enforcement. Despite these harsh realities, the lawmakers continued, the Biden-Harris administration “is focused on bringing as many foreign nationals into the U.S. as possible, including setting a refugee resettlement goal of 125,000 in fiscal year 2024 alone.”
All of these policies make it much harder for Americans to achieve their dreams of homeownership, or at least keep housing costs affordable, a fact that becomes even more difficult to swallow when you consider that, according to the letter, “HHS ORR works with HUD and the Department of State to provide housing assistance to refugees and other foreign nationals.”
The lawmakers continued:
While Americans struggle to buy homes and pay rent, the Biden-Harris Administration has been working to help refugees and other foreign nationals find affordable housing once they arrive in the United States. In fact, HHS ORR is working with HUD and the Department of State to connect refugees and other foreign nationals to housing assistance. For example, HUD’s website refers to refugees and other so-called “newcomers” as “new Americans” and states its desire to help these people “find safe, permanent, and affordable housing by providing access to housing counseling and sharing important resources on HUD programs and services.” In August 2023, HUD and HHS ORR signed a memorandum of understanding to “ensure that ORR-served individuals have equitable access to HUD-assisted resources through partnerships, outreach, education, and technical assistance.”
The lawmakers also cited a June 21, 2024, briefing for congressional staff, in which State Department officials explained that a “weak” job market and high housing prices severely limited the current administration’s appetite to admit more refugees.
“In light of the economic collapse of the Biden-Harris Administration and the national housing crisis brought about by the Biden-Harris Administration’s increased immigration of foreign nationals, the Committee is increasingly monitoring HHS ORR’s apparent prioritization of refugees, parolees, and other foreign nationals over U.S. citizens and other lawful residents,” the letter read, in which the lawmakers requested documentation on five issues for the purposes of oversight of federal immigration policy. The issues are:
- All documents and communications between HHS ORR and the Department of State, HUD, Department of Homeland Security (DHS), or their component agencies that refer to or relate to housing assistance for refugees, parolees, and other aliens from January 20, 2021 through the present.
- All documents and communications between HHS ORR and the Department of State, HUD, DHS, or their component entities that refer to or relate to Church World Service refugee housing solutions, including, but not limited to, all cooperative agreements and memoranda of understanding, from January 20, 2021 through the present.
- All documents and communications between HHS ORR and Church World Service relating to the housing of refugees, parolees, and other aliens from January 20, 2021 through the present.
- The number of foreign nationals (by immigration status) that HHS ORR referred to HUD for housing assistance, the number of foreign nationals who received housing assistance, and the amount spent on such referrals and assistance since January 20, 2021.
- HHS ORR’s eligibility criteria for HUD referrals and housing assistance, and the categories of aliens to whom such referrals and assistance may be received.
Jordan and McClintock have set a deadline of August 7, 2024 for answers to these questions.
It is estimated that 17 million According to the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), illegal immigrants living in American communities: Annual Report The bill, released last year, costs American taxpayers about $163 billion a year. Additionally, according to Breitbart News, about 99% of these border crossing people are living freely in the United States. detail:
Of the millions of illegal immigrants in the United States and those who have crossed the border, approximately 1.34% are in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody or monitored through the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program (ISAP).
Arizona Senate candidate Kali Lake has also sounded the alarm about this issue, telling Breitbart News at the Republican National Convention last week that rents have doubled in many areas — another negative impact of illegal immigration that directly affects Americans.
“They are [illegal immigrants] “They have to live somewhere, so the government puts them up. Sometimes they put them in a hotel, sometimes they subsidize an apartment. And even if they don’t, we have to compete with them for an apartment,” she explained.
“When there’s limited supply and too much demand, prices rise, and that’s exactly what makes housing unaffordable for young people,” she continued, explaining that many young people tell her they can’t see a future where they “own a home with a backyard where their dog can run around, and be able to afford to get married and have kids.”
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“And it makes them sad. They want it. They want the American Dream,” Lake added.
