FAIR: Senate Immigration Package is Not a Credible or Serious Solution to the Biden Border Crisis

The following statement was issued by Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), in response to the Senate Working Group's so-called border security agreement that fails to address the crisis:

WASHINGTON, Feb. 5, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The long-awaited 'border security' agreement negotiated by the Senate Working Group would bring neither border security nor relief from the unprecedented wave of illegal immigration that began the day President Biden took office, charged the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR). Rather, the proposal would ratify ongoing illegal immigration at historically high levels.

"The Senate plan does nothing to end the incentives to illegally immigrate to the United States that have resulted in some 10 million people crossing our borders illegally over the past three years. The proposal does not stop mass catch-and-release or end asylum abuse. Instead, it actually codifies a process to automatically release anyone claiming asylum, encouraging more abuse of the system. In addition, the immigration package does nothing to limit the parole authority that has been abused by Secretary Mayorkas, and in fact allows the illegal parole programs and the CBP One App scheme to continue unabated.

"The Working Group plan would actually codify the acceptance of staggering levels of illegal immigration that exceed the number of legal immigrants we admit each year. DHS's authority to expel people entering the country illegally, which was touted as revolutionary, is actually discretionary and sunsets after three years. The border will remain open, despite what the working group says, and this bill declares that 4,000 or 5,000 encounters a day is acceptable. The Senate plan would sanction illegal immigration levels of up to 1,825,000 a year – which is beyond crisis levels.

"Worse yet, the Senate plan further incentivizes illegal immigration by granting asylum-seekers work permits nearly immediately, allowing certain aliens who have been paroled to gain citizenship, increasing green card numbers and providing taxpayer funding for legal counsel for illegal aliens.

"The bill fails at every level and is a massive giveaway to illegal aliens, which was completely predictable given that they negotiated with the Secretary who willfully and knowingly created this border crisis."

Additionally, the Senate proposal:

• Incentivizes more asylum abuse by near-immediate issuance of work permits to 'asylum-seekers,' rather than requiring them to wait and ensure that their claims are not frivolous.
• Relaxes work permits for those claiming asylum and extends their validity to two years.
• Codifies the Biden Administration asylum rule allowing asylum officers – instead of immigration judges – to decide the merits of asylum cases.
• Allows those denied asylum to appeal their decision over and over, even creating new bureaucratic processes to ensure they are not removed in a timely manner.
• Provides taxpayer-funded legal representation to unaccompanied minors.
• Appropriates $2.3 billion for refugee programs (primarily for illegal aliens arriving from Cuba and Haiti), $850 million for State to address humanitarian needs in Central and South America, $415 million to address irregular migration and provide funds to foreign countries to receive and integrate their illegal aliens, and nearly $4 billion for USCIS, including half a billion dollars for facilities.
• Directs $1.4 billion to the Shelter and Services Program (SSP), which awards grants to nongovernmental organizations that facilitate illegal immigration.
• Prohibits protection determinations of illegal aliens in ICE and CBP facilities, forcing USCIS to construct new facilities to carry out its new duties, thus delaying the effective date of the new policies.
• Provides a path to citizenship for those illegally paroled in from Afghanistan while not ending the ability of the Secretary to repeat the abuse in the future.
• Requires USCIS officers that deny a protection claim to also provide the alien with options on departing the United States.
• Requires the Secretary to issue reports on parole – rather than reining in his abuse – requirements which he has clearly ignored the last three years.
• Contains provisions that have nothing to do with securing our border, such as adding 50,000 new green cards per year for five years and granting work authorization to the spouses and children of H-1B workers.

"The Senate plan is nothing more than a capitulation to mass illegal immigration, rather than a credible plan to regain control of our borders and immigration system," Stein charged. "We urge the full Senate to reject the Working Group's proposal and the House to remain steadfast in its insistence that aid to our allies, in their efforts to protect their security, be contingent on real policy changes to secure our own borders and protect the security of the United States," Stein concluded.

Contact: Joey Chester, 202-742-1827, [email protected]

SOURCE Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR)