US Southern Border Crisis: Is Biden’s Softness Making the Matter Worse?

 

 

“I trust the Biden administration’s policy to be based on humanitarian(ism) and love of children rather than political points or red meat for their Republican base.”

(Nancy Pelosi)

 

With the US southern border flooded with scores of immigrants once again, the Democrats-Republicans tussle is getting worse amid the accumulating border crisis.

Former President Donald Trump championed his anti-immigrant policies in various ways. His mantra of anti-immigration was also the center of his policy measures in his presidential election campaign.

As thousands of families accumulate on the US-Mexico border, including unaccompanied children, Congress debates what to do with those immigrants.

As the influx of unaccompanied children was rising at the US southern border exponentially, the border authorities have decided to close the border temporarily.

This came at a time when thousands of immigrants were showing up at the border, hoping to cross into the United States. The Homeland Security Secretary has even declined to provide the date of the reopening of the facilities, saying that it would be opened “as soon as possible.”

As the situation stands now, the facilities where unaccompanied children are supposed to reside in US custody are completely occupied.

Now, the Biden administration would need to open new facilities or expand the existing ones, which can take a fair amount of time if not addressed urgently.

This closing of the border will further setback the Democratic cause of open borders, which completely neglected the border security in the latest proposed immigration bill.

Republicans do not want to entertain those immigrants anymore, while Democrats suggest otherwise.

What are the burgeoning border crises in the USA’s southern border, and how will they impact the politics of the United States?

What is the future of the unaccompanied children stranded on the border? Will Democrats be able to get rid of the current mess? Let’s see.

The Burgeoning Humanitarian and Border Crisis

Immediately after taking over as the president of the United States, Joe Biden faced tremendous crises left behind by the previous government of President Donald Trump.

One such issue is the burgeoning border crisis over the southern border of the United States. Several unaccompanied children arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border, challenging Joe Biden to fulfill his campaign promise of an immigrant-friendly America.

President Joe Biden pledged during his campaign that he would reverse the anti-immigrant policies of the Trump Administration.

He also sent his aides to the southern border, who returned disappointed.

With thousands of migrants, including unaccompanied minors, waiting for a decision from the US power corridors, the Congressional tussle makes the situation worse for them.

The problem came at a time when the political and economic situation is already worsening in the country.

In the wake of the times when Custom and Border Protection (CBP) is raising the alarm for the shortage of space to accommodate the growing number of immigrants, this event has gained even more significance.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas was one of the aides that traveled to the southern border on the president’s behest.

The devastating hurricanes, COVID-19 crisis, political instability, and economic crisis in Mexico are some of the contributing factors to the current immigration crisis.

The time has come for Biden to realize his campaign promises, as soft border policies were one of the primary mottos of his election campaign.

Another problem with unaccompanied children is that they have to stay in specific centers that are not intended for children at all.

Most of the centers at the southern border are operating under the care of US CBP, which has also raised this concern along the same grounds.

Border Crisis: Are Democrats Turning a Blind Eye to Escape the Reality?

Democrats are trying to have a blind eye on the crisis as the situation worsens on the US borders. While some of them are hesitant to call it a crisis, others are blaming the inherited mess on the Trump administration.

Southern border administration coordinator Roberta Jacobson avoided calling the situation a crisis. She said,

 

“We have to do what we do regardless of what anybody calls the situation.”

(Roberta Jacobson)

 

Similarly, Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that the Biden administration inherited the “broken border system.”

Whatever the situation is, the responsibility to evade the crisis now lies on Biden’s shoulders.

While true that Republicans will try to put as many roadblocks in Biden’s path as possible, not provoking more humanitarian crises while incorporating the unaccompanied children in the national mainstream will be a challenge for President Biden.

Southern Border Crisis: Did Biden’s Soft Policies Make Matters Worse?

Experts are even suggesting that Biden’s soft border policies have made the matter even worse.

Most of the immigrants know that they will receive favors on the US borders owing to the presence of Joe Biden in the Oval Office, so many immigrants are trying to cash the situation.

Had Trump been in the office, a lesser number of immigrants would appear on the border due to his harsh stance on immigrants.

This will be a lesson for Biden to learn how he shapes his border policies further to avoid this much infiltration of immigrants in the future.

Will Biden continue playing soft again, or will he promote tougher border policies to ensure that only a limited number of people enter the United States to avoid strain on the resources? Only time will tell.

 

Final Thoughts

In order to slow down the coming immigrants, the Biden administration is also looking to fund the home countries of immigrants.

This way, he is eyeing to minimize the inflow by providing them the facilities in their own countries. Reports suggest that he might end up donating $4 billion to tackle the issue.

Republicans can also try to delay this process considering their harsh stance on foreign countries.

Republicans are blaming President Joe Biden’s reversal of the Trump administration immigration policies for this disaster.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is also going to lead a group of Congressional Republicans to the southern border for the sake of political point-scoring on the issue.

Republicans are seeing it as an opportunity to build upon their 2022 election campaign.

By being critical of the Biden administration’s decision to revoke the anti-immigration laws, Republicans are trying to win the sympathy of their hardcore voters.

President Biden is presenting a more humane approach to the immigrants as compared to Donald Trump.

This includes reversing many anti-immigrant policies of Donald Trump, including the “Remain in Mexico” that gutted the asylum system of the United States.

Only time will tell if Biden can stand by his campaign promise, or if once again, he will bow down for the sake of the Republicans’ unity.