While much attention is focused on illegal aliens arriving in sanctuary cities, the real story unfolding is the concerted and choreographed disinformation campaign regarding the security of the southern border. When it comes to the security of Americans and the challenges to ending human trafficking and defeating the drug cartels, the first obligation of the federal government should be to tell the truth.
It was a responsibility that I took seriously during my time leading the Department of Homeland Security. (RELATED: MCDANIEL: America Is Barreling Toward A Cliff’s Edge Because Of Democrats — There’s A Better Way Forward)
Today, however, the Biden administration appears less interested in taking ownership and offering solutions and more interested in pointing figures and placing blame. A simple look at the facts shows just how out of touch this White House is when it comes to the border — and the American people know it.
Let’s start with Vice President Kamala Harris. On national television, she recently said, “The border is secure, but we also have a broken immigration system, in particular, over the last four years before we came in, and it needs to be fixed.” This was no gaffe as she reiterated, “We have a secure border in that is a priority for any nation, including ours and our administration.”
Not to be outdone, the White House press secretary — who has a record of pedaling disinformation — piled on the untruthful statements recently.
The most outrageous was her claim that, “We are doing a lot more [than the Trump Administration] to secure the border and could be doing even more if Republicans would stop their obstruction,” she said. This was on top of her claim that “It’s not like somebody walks over [the border.]”
These statements have received most of the attention, but they lack credibility as neither official has bothered to visit the border and see the reality. After 19 months of a failed border strategy, the American people see through it too. By now, just about everyone is aware that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has apprehended more than 2 million illegal aliens at the border this fiscal year (FY) — the highest number ever recorded and September’s numbers are not yet in.
While a majority of American adults polled by NPR unsurprisingly believe we have an “invasion” at the southern border, from my experience I know the situation is far worse. These numbers are unsustainable, and the trafficking and smuggling networks are exploiting the sheer volume of migrants CBP is forced to process to flood our country with bad actors and deadly fentanyl.
Lost in the absurdity of claiming the border is secure are other statements the vice president made during the same interview that should really alarm the American people. Most concerning, she said, “I think that there is no question that we have to do what the president and I asked Congress to do, the first request we made: pass a bill to create a pathway to citizenship.”
Translation: The Biden administration’s solution to the border crisis continues to be amnesty for millions of illegal aliens. Let that sink in. We have no idea who most of these people are, but the administration wants to hand out green cards. This is not a solution to the record number of illegal aliens coming to the border each month.
This is a failed strategy. It is also a national security risk. We tried this back in 1986 and the result was an explosion of new illegal immigration. The vetting failures resulted in Ramzi Yousef being amnestied. He promptly used his new legal status to orchestrate the first terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in 1993.
Having just observed the 21st anniversary of 9/11 — another immigration and intelligence failure — the Biden administration seems unaware of or ignorant to the role weak immigration enforcement plays in jeopardizing the safety of the homeland.
The White House’s talk of a “broken” immigration system is nonsense. While our immigration laws could benefit from some revisions, there are sufficient authorities available today to secure the border, end human trafficking and defeat the cartels. I know because I utilized those authorities, including the Remain in Mexico policy, to establish one of the most secure borders in generations.
Real leadership entails taking responsibility when your policies fail, not hiding them from the American people by pretending they don’t exist or blaming the previous administration. The American people see through this disinformation campaign and are demanding solutions that will secure the border and protect the homeland. Will the Biden Administration change course?
Chad Wolf is the former Acting Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and Executive Director and Chair of the Center for Homeland Security and Immigration at the America First Policy Institute.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Robert Law, the Director of the Center for Homeland Security and Immigration at the America First Policy Institute and a former senior official at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services during the Trump Administration, contributed to this column.
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