Democrats who have railed against President Trump’s national emergency as a manufactured crisis are facing a political dilemma as border apprehensions have spiked and are on pace for the highest level since 2008.
Since Trump took office, congressional Democrats have sought to counter his hard-line immigration agenda by pointing to federal data that showed unauthorized crossings had, in recent years, fallen to “historic lows.” But after 2017, when apprehensions were the fewest in 46 years, the head of Customs and Border Protection has warned that a recent surge of Central American families has left the agency at its “breaking point.”
For Democrats eager to draw a sharp contrast with Trump ahead of the 2020 presidential election cycle, the growing number of migrants being apprehended threatens to puncture a reliable talking point and force them into a fraught choice: sound heightened alarms and risk affirming Trump’s narrative
it’s absolutely, 100 percent true that every part of our border management system is beyond capacity and completely overwhelmed right now.”border “crisis,” or play down the rising numbers and risk appearing indifferent or negligent.
Over the first five months of fiscal 2019, CBP had apprehended 268,044 migrants, on pace for more than 643,300 this year. If reached, that total would be the most since 705,005 in 2008 and more than twice as high as the 310,531 migrants taken into custody two years ago.
Trump and his supporters have been quick to use the new data to try to heighten tensions about threats at the border and paint Democrats as indifferent to an issue the president plans to make a central issue of his reelection campaign.
In their fight, Democrats have pressed administration officials to acknowledge there is no emergency. During a Senate oversight hearing this month, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) asserted that border crossings “are still at a historic low compared to other times in our nation’s history.”
No, senator, they’re not,” CBP Commissioner Kevin McAleenan responded. “We’re on pace for over 700,000 crossings this year — that’s closer to historic highs than historic lows.”
After Blumenthal suggested the numbers were a fluke, McAleenan said: “We have to confront what’s happened in these five months. . . . This is new, different and potentially worsening.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/polit...=.4a5bd8d7bced
But federal immigration authorities, including career officials who predate the Trump administration, have grown alarmed by the posture of Democrats. CBP and other federal agencies, including Health and Human Services, which provides shelter to migrant children, have reported operating at maximum capacity, with Border Patrol agents being pulled from the field to perform administrative tasks to process the families.
the official added, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive internal operations.“I’m concerned about the lack of factual grounding in our political debate,” said one senior U.S. official whose career has spanned multiple administrations. Democrats are “starting to not even believe data created by professionals,”
Republicans have seized on statements from Democrats to paint them as turning a blind eye to the mounting problems and make the case that the rising numbers at the border have proved Trump right about a “crisis” — even though the situation also threatens to highlight the president’s failure to make progress on his top campaign promise to reduce unauthorized immigration.
The Republican National Committee posted a video clip of Blumenthal’s exchange with Mc*Aleenan on Twitter, where it has had more than 92,000 views.
“That argument’s over,” Alex Nowrasteh, an immigration analyst at the libertarian Cato Institute, said of the Democrats’ talking point.
Nowrasteh emphasized that dealing with the migrant families requires different solutions from Trump’s wall, but he added of Democrats: “We should stop focusing on an argument that may have worked five years ago. We need to deal with reality now.”
The reality is that more than 66,000 migrants were apprehended at the southern border in February — three times the number from the same month in 2017 — and the numbers are on track to surpass that in March, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said this week.
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a policy analyst at the American Immigration Council, said the Trump administration has failed to present the full picture. He noted that the number of undocumented immigrants in the country soared from an estimated 3 million to a peak of 11 million from 1993 through 2007 — meaning that, in addition to those who were apprehended, millions more successfully sneaked through.
Earl (03-23-2019)
The right wing is a funny lot. First they support blocking the port of entry that were intended to allow legal entry into the country for asylum seekers. Thus they force the immigrants to illegally enter the country (which is allowed by American Asylum Laws). Now they whine about the increase in illegal entries while releasing over a hundred thousand immigrants into the country.
Totally amazing.
"2Timothy 3 "But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away"
Bourdeaux Nights (03-22-2019), ThatOwlWoman (03-22-2019)
no they do not "block ports of entry" - they keep them open unless there is a rush at the border that threatens to overwhelm border staff.
gee blockhead -why do you think catch and release is a forced move by DHS?Now they whine about the increase in illegal entries while releasing over a hundred thousand immigrants into the country.
Do you know what Flores is? Reno v. Flores, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reno_v._Flores
MANUFACTURED CRISIS? As in 'GET THERE FAST, NOW, PAY WHATEVER IT TAKES' you might not be able to soon. How do you say that in Spanish? Anyone think it isn't a 'SALES PITCH' among the smugglers. Not to mention things appear to be disintegrating badly in some parts.
PS SEA RESCUES and TURNAWAYS are up now!
WK1 3/28-/4 _Cases 301k--Dead 18.1k Lethality 2.72%
WK2 4/5-/13 _Cases 555k--Dead 22.1K Lethality 3.9%
WK3 4/20-/21 Cases 774k -Dead 37.2K Lethality 4.8%
WK4 4/22-/29 Cases 1M --Dead 58.8K Lethality 5.9%
WK5 5/1-/8__ Cases 1.3M -Dead 75.7K Lethality 6.1%
WK6 5/9-16__Cases 1.4M --Dead 85.8K Lethality 6.1%
WK7 5/17-24_Cases 1.7M - Dead 97.6K Lethality 5.9%
WK8 5/28 Cases 1.7M - DEAD 101.2K - Same
^ it's a "manufactured crisis" ( Pelosi)) ROFL..Dems are soo twisted into denial
Earl (03-23-2019)
Bourdeaux Nights (03-22-2019)
Bourdeaux Nights (03-22-2019)
I understand how brain dead you right wingers are , however, why don't you tell the thousands that are setting in Mexico with a number written on their arm (Auschwitz anyone) just how open the border is.
https://www.vox.com/2019/3/5/1824499...m-trump-mexico
Who said it was a forced move dumb ass? Question is , why is the right wing fold of dumb f**ks whining about the ones legally seeking asylum, and then releasing over a hundred thousand others into the country?gee blockhead -why do you think catch and release is a forced move by DHS?
Last edited by Old Trapper; 03-22-2019 at 10:34 PM.
"2Timothy 3 "But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away"
Bourdeaux Nights (03-22-2019)
Earl (03-23-2019)
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