KINNEY COUNTY, Texas—For almost three years, Title 42 has remained in place, long after the public health emergency from COVID-19 ostensibly ended.
Title 42’s longevity is credited with being one of the remaining provisions to stem the tide of illegal immigration. It allowed for border agents to ensure that only essential travel occurred at U.S. borders. It directed that illegal immigrants could be quickly expelled back into Mexico as a pandemic precaution, rather than be processed under Title 8 immigration law, which is a much more protracted process inside the United States.
Upon taking office in early 2021, President Joe Biden’s administration began creating carve-outs to Title 42 for illegal border crossers; first allowing unaccompanied minors to be exempt from it, then most families, and eventually, the majority of illegal aliens.
Currently, 30 percent of illegal aliens are being returned to Mexico under Title 42, while the remaining 70 percent are being released into the United States under Title 8.
When Title 42 is revoked, that 30 percent also will be processed under Title 8; however, nearly two-thirds are Mexican nationals who will fall under the expedited removal provision of Title 8; which acts similarly to Title 42. That leaves about 37 percent of current Title 42 returnees who will now fall under Title 8 and remain in the United States.
During October, border officials processed just shy of 81,500 illegal aliens under Title 42, turning them back to Mexico. Nearly 196,000 were processed via Title 8 and released into the country.
If Title 42 weren’t in place in October, about 30,000 of those 81,500 illegal aliens sent back under Title 42 would have been released into the country via Title 8, with the remainder being Mexican nationals turned back under expedited removal.
“The problem is, you’re giving them the lawful right to be here,” former CBP Commissioner Mark Morgan told The Epoch Times on Dec. 20.
The Biden administration has removed “any consequences of entering illegally,” and 90 percent of illegal immigrants end up filing “a fake and fraudulent claim” to asylum, Morgan said.
“We should not be releasing them in the United States,” he said. “We should be detaining them.”
Morgan was CBP commissioner under Trump when the “Remain in Mexico” program forced illegal aliens to wait in Mexico until their claim was adjudicated. This requirement quickly cut illegal immigration by 85 percent, Morgan said.
He said the end of Title 42 will just add to the current crisis.
“We’re already in the worst self-inflicted, catastrophic crisis we’ve seen in our lifetime. The end of Title 42 isn’t going to cause the crisis—we’re already in the crisis. It’s just going to take that and make it worse,” Morgan said.
“If it’s truly a public health tool, which it is, and if you’re truly applying it to prevent the further interdiction of spread of a dangerous infectious disease into the country, then you apply it to everyone.”
El Paso, Texas, has become the latest epicenter of the border crisis, with Border Patrol agents on track to apprehend about 65,000 illegal aliens this month.
White House officials have maintained that the border is secure.
“Those who do not have a legal basis to remain will be quickly removed. And so we will continue to fully enforce our immigration laws in a fair, orderly, and humane manner.”
Front Line Border Patrol Agents
“Honestly, no one knows what’s going on,” a Border Patrol agent from one of the southern border’s busiest sectors told The Epoch Times. “There has been no guidance passed down on what to expect or prepare for.”The agent spoke to The Epoch Times on condition of anonymity for fear of repercussions.
“Who even knows if they’re going to prosecute under Title 8? Or if there’s jail space to prosecute? Title 8 hasn’t really been applied since before COVID, unless under circumstances such as if they’re an aggravated felon or something along those lines,” the agent said.
“But one thing agents have heard is that those in Mexico right now waiting to cross are waiting until after Title 42 goes away to cross because they’re hoping to be paroled or get some sort of immigration status.”
Another southern border agent told The Epoch Times that the Border Patrol has “the infrastructure to remove everyone who shows up at the border.”
He said Title 42 was a half-baked “effort from the beginning to pretend we are doing something.”
A third Border Patrol agent accused Biden of “eradicating the definition of citizenship and our sovereignty” with his open border policies.
Morgan said Border Patrol agents are unable to tackle their law enforcement mission during the current crisis.
“Ninety percent of their mission now is immigration. So they’re not able to put resources to counterterrorism or to address transnational criminal organizations or to secure the border.”
