FOX FIRST: Representative Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, signs bipartisan House legislation that would prevent President Biden from lifting existing Title 42 immigration restrictions without a plan to address the expected increase in immigrants.
Cuellar joins fellow Democrats Jared Golden of Maine, Stephanie Murphy of Florida, Chris Pappas of New Hampshire and Greg Stanton of Arizona, saying the Biden administration is not ready for the huge increase in border crossings expected when expulsions for title 42 expire on 23 May.
“Title 42 should not be removed,” Cuelar told Fox News Digital in an interview in which he revealed that he had signed the legislation, which was introduced earlier.
TWO-PARTY HOSPITAL FOR THE EXTENSION OF TITLE 42 LAST MEDICAL SIGNS OPPOSITION MUNICIPALITY TO THE MOVEMENT OF BIDEN BORDERS
He said that if the Democrats “do not stand up and do the right thing, they will be hit hard by the Republicans” in the upcoming by-elections.
WASHINGTON, DC – JULY 30: U.S. Representative Henry Cuellar (D-TX) talks about southern border security and illegal immigration during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on July 30, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images)
“But some of us stand up and say this is the right thing to do at the border,” Cuellar said of keeping the Title 42 in place. “We all believe in immigration reform, but we do not want border chaos. We want law and order at the border.”
The House bill is similar to the bipartisan Senate bill introduced this week with the support of five Democrats: Senators Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., Jon Tester, D-Mont., Joe Manchin , DW .Va., And Maggie Hassan, DN.H.
The legislation will extend Title 42 by an additional 60 days and require within 30 days the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) submit a plan to Congress on how to address the expected increase in U.S. border immigrants -Mexico.
The Title 42 mandate was implemented in March 2020 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and has been used by both the Trump and Biden administrations to expel the majority of immigrants to the border. .
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The CDC announced last week that it would end the order on May 23, immediately sparking fears on both sides of the aisle, including the Biden government, that it would lead to an increase in immigration – in addition to the already huge number encountered by Border Patrol Day.
“The Biden administration is not currently prepared for a major increase in border crossings,” Golden said in a statement. “Terminating these Title 42 principles without a resulting immigrant influx management plan is irresponsible and could create crisis situations that would be dangerous for both immigrants coming to America and for Americans themselves.”
UNITED STATES – MARCH 6: Representative Jared Golden, D-Maine, appears during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on “External Perspectives on Nuclear Deterrence Policy and Attitude” at the Rayburn Building on Wednesday, March 6, 2019. . (Tom Williams / CQ Roll Call)
Cuelar said he has spoken to the White House twice to urge the administration not to remove the public health mandate. He is concerned that the removal of Title 42 sends a message to criminal organizations that “borders are open” and will mean that thousands more will cross when border guards are already inundated.
Speaking to Fox News Digital, Cuellar said the White House was sending “contradictory” messages when it asked Congress for billions more in aid in tackling COVID-19 to fight the pandemic inside America, but at the same time stated that “there is no pandemic here on the border. “
“They are contradictory signs when you say, ‘Hey, we need more help for our restaurants.’ We need more help to buy more vaccines … But oh, but we will remove Title 42, which is a public health (order). It was not Trump’s mandate. It’s a health mandate τε You say the borders are open. You can not really reconcile this in my opinion. “
YUMA, ARIZONA – DECEMBER 07: Immigrant men from many countries are detained by U.S. border patrol agents on the U.S.-Mexico border on December 7, 2021 in Yuma, Arizona. (John Moore / Getty Images)
The House of Representatives just Thursday approved $ 55 billion in additional aid for COVID-19 to restaurants and other businesses that have been severely affected. The Senate was also poised to approve $ 10 billion in relief for COVID-19 for treatments, vaccines and more, but the effort derailed this week when Republicans also wanted an amendment to prevent Biden from repealing Title 42.
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part of Internal security Sec. Alejandro Mallorca confirmed on Friday that public health would be abolished in May and that migrants would be able to seek asylum when they arrived at the border.
“Our asylum laws provide that if one qualifies, one can access a residence permit in the United States,” Mayorkas said. “And if it does not, it can be removed. At the time of the pandemic, we were practicing title 42.
“Title 42 will end on May 23, as expressed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and then we will apply the asylum procedure as planned,” he said on Friday.
FILE – In this March 16, 2020, archive photo, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott speaks during a press conference in San Antonio. (AP Photo / Eric Gay, File) (AP Photo / Eric Gay, File)
In response, Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott said this week he would send immigrants on charter buses and flights to Washington, DC, to bring the crisis to Biden’s doorstep. He also ordered inspections of trucks entering Texas from Mexico.
Cueller said he understood Abbott’s frustration, but disagreed with his answer. He questioned whether Abbott had the “legal basis” to transport migrants to DC and expressed concern that delaying trucks coming to the US for external inspections could cause delays for mayors and disrupt the supply chain, especially for car parts needed. factories in Detroit and beyond.
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“I wish he really did not stop these trucks or delay him,” Cuelar said, warning that Mexico could retaliate with its own truck controls.
UNITED STATES – FEBRUARY 27: Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas’s Representative at the House Financial Services Committee on Monetary Policy and the State of the Economy’s testimony from Federal Reserve President Jerub Power’s 27 Speaker P Tom Williams / CQ Roll Call) (Tom Williams / CQ Roll Call / Getty Images)
“That would not be good for our economy and their economy,” he said.
Republicans in the bipartisan House of Representatives are Tony Gonzales of Texas, Tom O’Halleran of Arizona, August Pfluger of Texas, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Don Bacon of Nebraska, and Maria Elvira Salazar of Texas.
In addition, other Democrats who do not formally support the bill have sounded the alarm over the annulment of the Title 42 order.
Texas Democrat Vicente Gonzalez said in a statement that as long as the Biden administration provides the plan and resources, “we will once again be completely unprepared to handle the outbreak of illegal immigration on our southern border in a humane, safe and orderly manner.” “
Fox News’ Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
