n their letter Thursday to President Joe Biden, Democratic Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly said Title 42 should end eventually, but not until “you are completely ready to execute and coordinate a comprehensive plan that ensures a secure, orderly, and humane process at the border.”
The senators’ letter puts them at odds with advocates who have long demanded an end to the policy that one called “a cruel relic” of the Trump era. Under Title 42, border officials can turn back immigrants who potentially pose a health risk by entering the country.
More than 1.7 million migrants have been turned away since the policy was enacted in March 2020. Critics say the policy exposes migrants to violence when they are turned away at the border while doing little to protect the U.S. from COVID-19, particularly as cases here are falling sharply.
inema and Kelly joined three Texas lawmakers last June in a letter “urging” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to start creating comprehensive plans to prepare for the end of Title 42. Despite multiple meetings with DHS officials – Kelly’s schedule alone shows four separate calls or meetings with Mayorkas since last summer – the lawmakers said they felt their initial request had gone “unanswered.”
A statement from Sinema’s office Friday said while DHS provided the senators with “some information … both remain unsatisfied the preparation and planning will result in a secure, safe, fair, and humane situation at the border.”
The senators also criticized what they called a lack of communication between DHS officials and local government leaders and community organizations in Arizona that provide goods and services to assist migrants.
https://gilaherald.com/kelly-sinema-tell-biden-to-think-twice-before-ending-border-policy/
The senators’ letter puts them at odds with advocates who have long demanded an end to the policy that one called “a cruel relic” of the Trump era. Under Title 42, border officials can turn back immigrants who potentially pose a health risk by entering the country.
More than 1.7 million migrants have been turned away since the policy was enacted in March 2020. Critics say the policy exposes migrants to violence when they are turned away at the border while doing little to protect the U.S. from COVID-19, particularly as cases here are falling sharply.
inema and Kelly joined three Texas lawmakers last June in a letter “urging” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to start creating comprehensive plans to prepare for the end of Title 42. Despite multiple meetings with DHS officials – Kelly’s schedule alone shows four separate calls or meetings with Mayorkas since last summer – the lawmakers said they felt their initial request had gone “unanswered.”
A statement from Sinema’s office Friday said while DHS provided the senators with “some information … both remain unsatisfied the preparation and planning will result in a secure, safe, fair, and humane situation at the border.”
The senators also criticized what they called a lack of communication between DHS officials and local government leaders and community organizations in Arizona that provide goods and services to assist migrants.
https://gilaherald.com/kelly-sinema-tell-biden-to-think-twice-before-ending-border-policy/
