With many people crossing through the southern border, the concern regarding COVID-19 passing from country to country is at an all-time high. FEMA administrator Robert Fenton affirms that testing is happening along the border. However, on Sunday, Bold TV reporters traveled into Tijuana, Mexico, by foot and did not have to show a negative test to return to the U.S. The staff also witnessed about 80 individuals traveling by foot – who also did not have to show a negative COVID-19 test result.
On at least four occasions while traveling to Mexico from California, Bold TV reporters were not asked about their exposure to COVID-19 by immigration officials. In fact, the only questions immigration officials asked were, “Why were you in Mexico?” and “Where are you going?”
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently shared that of the incoming immigrants, under 6% are COVID-19 positive. FEMA also stated around 25,000 people are awaiting a COVID test.
The heat is on the Biden administration as the growing number of unaccompanied children reaches an all-time high. The U.S. has approximately 15,000 unaccompanied migrants in custody and thousands in facilities owned by Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Those in facilities have been kept longer than legally allowed.
Officials are uttering back that the immigration system takes time to rebuild after comprehensive alterations during Trump’s presidency.
On Sunday, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas went on four TV talk shows and said the Trump administration is to blame for “dismantling the system that processes and cares for migrants.” He also clarified that immigrants should not come to the U.S.
“The message is quite clear: Do not come,” Mayorkas said on ABC this weekend.
Before Mayorkas’ statement on Sunday, the Biden administration took a more humanitarian approach to illegal immigration to the U.S. This included completely halting the southern border wall construction and introducing immigration legislation to expand citizenship pathways, such as the American Dream and Promise Act. The administration also ended the “remain in Mexico policy,” which forced migrants to wait for their asylum hearings in Mexico.
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