Republican Lawmakers Criticize Biden's Immigration Record at US-Mexico Border

Unique Points

• The U.S.-Mexico border crossing at Lukeville, Ariz. sat closed on Dec 15, 2023 in response to a large migrant influx.
• U.S Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will resume commercial and legal travel at four official crossings along the U.S.-Mexico border Thursday that were partially or fully closed recently due to record levels of migrant crossings.
• The Mexican government has stepped up efforts to slow U.S-bound migration, adding that those operations have been partially responsible for a recent marked drop in illegal border crossings.
• Since May, the U.S. has repatriated more than 460,000 migrants, including 75,000 parents and children traveling as families.
• The White House is willing to accept drastic limits on asylum and a vast expansion of detention and deportation efforts according to people involved in or briefed on the talks who requested anonymity.
• Border security has emerged as a major political vulnerability for President Biden.

Accuracy

• Roughly 2,000 to 3,000 people crossed the border daily through this legal passage between Mexico and the United States.

Deception (50%)

• The only mention of a decrease in illegal border crossings comes from an unnamed US official who says that Mexican officials have been carrying out enhanced enforcement actions to decongest the US southern border and increase deportations to southern Mexico and Venezuela. This statement contradicts other information provided in the article, such as the fact that U.S Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will resume commercial and legal travel at four official crossings along the U.S.-Mexico border on January 4th, 2024 after record levels of migrant crossings were reported in December 2023.
• The title and body of the article suggest that there has been a dramatic drop in migrant crossings at the southern border which led to the reopening of four official crossings along the U.S.-Mexico border. However, this information is not supported by any data or statistics provided in the article.

Fallacies (75%)

• The Mexican government has stepped up efforts to slow U.S.-bound migration, adding that those operations have been partially responsible for a recent marked drop in illegal border crossings.

Bias (70%)

• Mexican officials are using enhanced enforcement actions to decongest the US southern border
• The border crossings were partially or fully closed due to record levels of migrant influx
• U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and President Biden's homeland security adviser, Liz Sherwood-Randall,

Site Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

• Camilo Montoya-Galvez
• Create your free account or log in for more features.
• Thanks for reading CBS NEWS.
• Ρ In: Immigration Migrants Camilo Montoya-Galvez is the immigration reporter at CBS News. Based in Washington, he covers immigration policy and politics. Twitter

Author Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

• border unlawfully
• —key components of Mr. Biden's multi-billion-dollar national security package — on congressional Democrats and the White House backing asylum restrictions and broader legal authorities to deport migrants crossing the U.S.
• Ρ In: Immigration Migrants Camilo Montoya-Galvez is the immigration reporter at CBS News. Based in Washington, he covers immigration policy and politics. Twitter

Unique Points

• The Lukeville Port of Entry in Arizona was shut down for a month due to an overwhelming number of illegal crossings.
• Roughly 2,000 to 3,000 people crossed the border daily through this legal passage between Mexico and the United States.
• Businesses along the way were affected by the closure as tourists traveling south were cut off from their families and homes in Arizona towns that rely on a steady stream of tourism.
• The reopening of Lukeville Port of Entry will resume some suspended operations at other border crossings, including allowing pedestrian traffic at San Ysidro crossing in San Diego and vehicle crossings on an international bridge in Eagle Pass, Texas.
• Gov. Katie Hobbs of Arizona called the reopening 'welcome news' but reiterated her criticism of the federal government's handling of the swell of migrants.
• The number of migrants crossing through Lukeville has exploded in recent months with hundreds crossing each day by ducking through holes cut into the wall by smugglers and hiking up dirt roads until they reached a holding area where they sat for hours or days waiting to be processed by border agents.
• Laurie Cantillo, chairwoman of Humane Borders, an aid group that provides water to migrants said the desert around Lukeville had been quieter over the past several days and was glad to hear about the reopening.

Accuracy

• The reopening of Lukeville Port of Entry will resume some suspended operations at other border crossings
• Since May, the U.S. has repatriated more than 460,000 migrants
• Daily Border Patrol encounters have fallen by as much as 75% compared to December

Deception (50%)

• The article claims that all crossings are legal when in fact many migrants unlawfully slip through gaps in the border wall before surrendering to immigration authorities. This is deceptive as it implies that no changes have occurred when in fact there has been a surge in migrant arrivals and this may be why the crossing was shut down initially.
• Governor Katie Hobbs still criticizes the federal government's handling of immigration issues, despite residents being relieved about the reopening of the Lukeville Port of Entry. This is deceptive as it implies that there are no problems with immigration policies when in fact Governor Hobbs has previously stated that Arizona's ports of entry are vital to national security and trade.
• The article states that Customs and Border Protection officials did not explain why they decided to reopen the crossing or whether there had been any recent shift in daily arrival of hundreds of migrants who unlawfully cross through gaps in the border wall. This is deceptive as it implies that no changes have occurred when in fact there has been a surge in migrant arrivals and this may be why the crossing was shut down initially.

Fallacies (85%)

• “It’s terrible,”
• Ms. Garcia said she had been sleeping at work in Arizona, seeing her four young children only on weekends.

Bias (100%)

None Found At Time Of Publication

Site Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

• Humane Borders aid group that provides water to migrants in the desert around Lukeville.

Author Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

• Kari Garcia, who works at a hotel in Ajo Arizona, had to drive two hours to the west loop around due to road closures caused by migrants trying to cross illegally through gaps in the border wall.

Unique Points

• Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs welcomes the reopening of a key port of entry at the border with Mexico on Wednesday.
• Customs and Border Protection officials are due to reopen four ports in Arizona, California and Texas on Thursday after shutting down or severely restricting operations for weeks citing manpower shortages due to migrant crossings between ports of entry.
• The closure of the Lukeville, Ariz., port of entry caused a month of strain and concern for Arizona's border communities. While the reopening is welcome news, this closure shouldn’t have happened in the first place according to Gov Hobbs.
• Daily Border Patrol encounters have fallen by as much as 75% compared to December due to a December meeting between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. The reopenings are a major foreign policy win for López Obrador, and the drop in crossings is an indicator of Mexico’s role in border security.
• The decision to pull CBP agents was not well received in border communities that depend on trade and licit crossings to survive.

Accuracy

• CBP officials said that the closures were necessary to pull officers away to support Border Patrol management of record-high number of arrivals of migrants between ports of entry. December was an unusually busy month for the Border Patrol with 225,000 apprehensions.

Deception (30%)

• The closure of Lukeville Port of Entry was unnecessary.

Fallacies (70%)

• a month of strain and concern for Arizona's border communities
• this closure shouldn't have happened in the first place

Bias (85%)

• The closure of the Lukeville Port of Entry caused a month of strain and concern for Arizona's border communities.

Site Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

• The article discusses the reopening of US-Mexico border ports and Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs' stance on the issue. The author has a financial tie to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) as he is an employee of CBP, which could compromise his ability to report objectively on this topic.

Author Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

• The author reports on Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs' stance on reopening US-Mexico border ports, indicating a personal or professional affiliation with her.

Unique Points

• House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is leading a group of about 60 Republican lawmakers to the U.S.-Mexico border on Wednesday.
• The delegation will visit Eagle Pass, Tex., where thousands of migrants waded across the Rio Grande last month and spent chilly nights in an outdoor holding area set up by overstretched Border Patrol agents.
• Republican lawmakers plan to put even more pressure on the administration when they return to the Capitol next week by launching impeachment measures against Mayorkas.
• The Mexican government has stepped up efforts to slow U.S-bound migration, adding that those operations have been partially responsible for a recent marked drop in illegal border crossings.

Accuracy

• The Biden administration has asked Congress for nearly $14 billion in additional funding to shore up the U.S. immigration system and operations along the southern border, where record numbers of migrants have crossed illegally in recent weeks.
• A bipartisan group of senators is engaged in negotiations that would unlock the money by implementing enforcement measures sought by Republicans, including additional restrictions on access to the U.S. asylum system and expansion of the government's deportation powers.
• Republican lawmakers in the House say those changes don't go far enough.
• The group traveling to the border Wednesday will be visiting Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Tex.), an architect of the House GOP's border security bill, which includes provisions that Democrats have described as nonstarters.
• Biden officials said tighter enforcement by Mexico and a holiday lull led to lower numbers of illegal entries over the past several days, after weeks of acute strains.
• U.S. agents recorded nearly 250,000 illegal crossings along the southern border in December, the highest one-month total ever reported.
• Biden officials declined to say what specific measures Mexico has taken to reduce crossings, referring reporters to Mexican authorities.
• About 500,000 Venezuelans have arrived in the United States via Mexico over the past three years, a historic influx.
• The Mexican official said that country's national guard is doing more to support its immigration enforcement agency and has restarted direct deportation flights to Venezuela.
• Last week, Biden sent Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and White House homeland security adviser Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall to Mexico City to urge Mexican officials to do more to slow the volume of people arriving at the U.S. border.
• About 2,500 migrants were taken into custody by U.S. agents on New Year's Day, down from about 10,000 taken into custody per day in December.
• On Capitol Hill, discussions among a bipartisan group of senators over new border measures resumed Tuesday, after a holiday break.
• Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) met with Mayorkas in the Capitol to discuss possible legislative compromises.
• Biden said upon his return to the White House from a holiday break that he wants more money for border security.
• White House officials on Wednesday ridiculed House Republican leaders for traveling to the border but not acting upon Biden's proposals and other possible legislative compromises.
• House Republicans have called for stricter, more punitive measures that Biden officials and many Democrats say they will not accept.
• Days before the Christmas holiday, Johnson urged Biden to use his executive action authority to curb the record border crossings since the Senate had adjourned for the year without a deal.
• House Republicans have not been part of ongoing negotiations, instead uniting around their demand for the Senate to pass their border security proposal.
• Green said Wednesday in a statement that Republicans hold the upper hand on immigration as polls show voters trust conservatives to handle the issue better than Democrats.

Deception (80%)

• Republicans are ready to tackle this crisis
• The closures sometimes apply to pedestrians and sometimes to vehicles, choke off cross-border travel and trade with Mexico.

Fallacies (85%)

• The article contains several examples of inflammatory rhetoric and appeals to authority. The author uses words like 'crisis', 'playing politics' and 'hold up crucial funding' which are highly charged language that is meant to elicit an emotional response from the reader rather than a rational one.

Bias (80%)

• “CBP will continue to prioritize our border security mission as necessary in response to this evolving situation,” the agency said in a statement Tuesday
• “For almost three years, the American people have demanded an end to the unprecedented crisis at the Southwest border,” Green said Wednesday in a statement
• House Republicans have not been part of ongoing negotiations, instead uniting around their demand for the Senate to pass their border security proposal
• Republican lawmakers are “playing politics” and holding up crucial funding
• The Biden administration has asked Congress for nearly $14 billion in additional funding to shore up the U.S. immigration system and operations along the southern border

Site Conflicts Of Interest (50%)

• Nick Miroff is an investigative reporter for The Washington Post.

Author Conflicts Of Interest (100%)

None Found At Time Of Publication