The Daily Signal - Why Federal Spending Bills Must Address Border Crisis

Episode Date: September 15, 2023

If Congressmen are serious about border security, they will use the power of the purse to secure America's borders, according to Lora Ries. Congress is gearing up for debates over the federal budget and some Republicans say they won't support any spending bill that gives money to the Department of Homeland Security without action being taken to secure the border, a hard line Ries, director of the Center for Border Security and Immigration at The Heritage Foundation, says she supports. (The Daily Signal is the news outlet of The Heritage Foundation.) The changes needed to secure the border are comprised in the Secure the Border Act, also known as H.R. 2, Ries says. The House has already passed the bill. If passed by the Senate and signed into law, the bill would "tackle asylum fraud" and end programs like "mass parole" and "catch and release," Ries says. "These are the types of tools that are needed to really secure the border and keep that flow stopped, and otherwise just giving more money to the administration is going to continue their current open border operations," Ries says. Ries joins "The Daily Signal Podcast" to explain why the fight to secure America's border is so critical to the nation's future.  Enjoy the show! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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This Black Friday, you've got a whole month to catch all the exclusive offers waiting for you. See your local Nissan dealer or nissan.ca for details. Conditions apply. This is the Daily Sentinel podcast for Friday, September 15th. I'm Virginia Allen. Congress is back in session and top of the House and Senate's list is passing a budget. And central to that conversation is the border crisis. The Heritage Foundation Director of the Center for Border Security and Immigration, Laura Reese,

joins us on the show today to explain why the border crisis is so connected to that conversation about spending. Stay tuned for our conversation after this. He was evading police. We were told that he was recruited on TikTok by the cartel. He was on Facebook live, and he was going over 105 miles an hour. He came straight off that exit, and he ran that red light, and he crashed into her and killed them. He mutilated them. What you just heard are the first few seconds.

of a brand new documentary from the Daily Signal on the real cost of the Biden administration's border crisis. We spoke with Elisa Tambunga, a mother who has experienced unfathomable tragedy and loss at the hands of a human smuggler. You can find the full documentary telling Elisa Tambunga's story on the Daily Signal's YouTube page or across our social media platforms.

Laura, thank you so much for being here with us today. we really appreciate your time. Thanks, Virginia, for having me on. Well, like I said, the House is back in session. The Senate is back in session. And top of list for Congress before the end of the year is passing a budget, passing the 12 annual appropriations bills. And within that conversation is the border crisis and specifically our southern border and conversations about security on the southern border. There is a coalition of Republicans.

many of whom are from Texas, who are saying that they will not support any bill that funds the Department of Homeland Security unless it is accompanied by changes in border policy. What are the changes in border policy that Republicans are demanding? Well, those changes are what's needed to actually secure the border. And they're encompassed in a bill, HR2, the Secure the Border Act, that the House has already passed back in May. and it has several items that are needed. One, it would tackle asylum fraud, which so many illegal aliens abused because it's their way to stay in the U.S. longer. It ends mass parole, which the Biden administration is using to bring in inadmissible aliens and allows them to stay here for two years and work here.

It ends catch and release. It reinstates and requires mandates the return in Mexico program, which was so successful during the last administration. It defunds the non-governmental organizations or NGOs that carry out Biden's open border operations. And requires good policies like the third country transit rule, which says, if you're fleeing another country for your life, then you need to apply for asylum in the first. state country in which you enter, not traverse multiple countries, just to country shopping come to the U.S. So these are the types of tools that are needed to really secure the border and keep that

flow stopped. And otherwise, just giving more money to the administration is going to continue their current open border operations, and we don't need more of that. So like you said, the House has passed HR2. They've passed the Secure the Border Act. The Senate has not taken it up. What is the Senate saying? Of course, the Senate is controlled by a Democrat majority.

What are Democrats saying as to why they wouldn't support a policy like this that is intended to close loopholes and actually secure our southern border? Well, when it comes to HR2, the Senate did a initial vote, and it didn't quite get over the finish line. but most Republicans did, in fact, vote for it. And Senator Cruz is now taking up the cause to see it to get over the finish line. But, again, we are in appropriations season, and you have other members like Senator Collins from Maine, who's the ranking member on the appropriations committee, who is simply giving support for more, quote-unquote, border security and therefore funding DHS. but they need to actually think what that means because one more dollar to this administration just continues the current border in security.

And so something drastic has to change to stop this agenda. Do you think that Republicans will be successful in really holding their ground on this? I think this has been a concern that, you know, so many Americans have is just what is happening on the border. And you have this coalition of Republicans who are now saying, okay, we're not going to agree to pass a budget unless there is real change on our southern border. Are they actually going to hold the line or will there be some form of compromise? What do you think is next?

I mean, we'll have to see. Unfortunately, in the past, it's been not enough Republicans that have the courage to stand up and say no more. But we are really in, I mean, just dealing with shocking numbers, 7 million illegal alien encounters plus another 1.7 million. and known Godaways, historic numbers across the board of unaccompanied alien children, fentanyl poisoning death, killed migrants at the border. UN just named the U.S.-Mexico border the most dangerous one in the world. So, you know, I don't know what it takes to have more conservative and even, frankly, Democrats wake up and say this is not sustainable and it is not good for our country.

Yeah. We have seen over and over and over the lives that have been affected at our southern border by the situation down there. Just recently at the Daily Signal, we had the opportunity to tell the story of a woman named Elisa Tambunga. And tragically, Elisa Tambunga lost both her mother and her daughter in a car crash with a human smuggler who had 11 illegal aliens in his vehicle. He was running from police going over 100 miles an hour. He flew through a red light and crashed into the Tambunga's vehicle. And they were pronounced dead. on the scene, leaving Elisa Tambunga without a mother, without a daughter, just devastating

this family. And unfortunately, tragically, the Tambunga story, it's not an exception. We've heard very, very similar stories before. Congress has heard Elisa Tambunga story. She testified before Congress. Just this week, there was a mom who testified before Congress who lost her son to fentanyl poisoning. I mean, we hear these stories constantly. And when Congress hears stories like these, Laura, what should their response be?

Their response should be to secure the border. And if the Biden administration isn't going to listen, then Congress has a very powerful tool in the purse. And that is withhold funds unless and until the administration changes course and actually secures the border. And let the CBP officers and the ICE agents do their job and enforce the law. deport those who are here illegally and keep out those who are not eligible to enter the country. Well, let's talk a little bit about the current situation because we're hearing a lot of mixed messages right now. So after Title 42 ended in May, Democrats and the Biden administration said that through the CBP One app and other policies that they had successfully stopped

this flood of migrants crossing the border illegally. So, So let's shed a little light on that. What is the current situation at our southern border? The Majorcas DHS announced in January a new program, which was virtually a shell game. The numbers got so bad of illegal aliens crossing between the ports on the southern border. It reached the all-time high in December of 22 that they said, okay, stop crossing between the ports illegally and instead use the C.V. mobile one application, go to a port of entry, and make an appointment, and we'll basically let you come in, even though you don't have a visa, you're inadmissible. We're going to parole you into the country for two years and you can get a work permit. And so people obeyed. And so the

numbers shifted for a bit. The numbers of inadmissible aliens encountered at the port drastically increased to the point even in June where they overtook the number. of illegal aliens crossing between the ports. But it did not last. When future illegal aliens and smugglers see what's going on and can kind of tell that real change isn't happening, the threats of deportation or removal aren't really happening, then they will revert back to the easiest, fastest way to get into the country. And so in July and August, we saw the numbers of illegal aliens between the ports going back up.

And so July was a significant increase over June and the unofficial numbers for August is an 88% increase over June and a 41% increase over July. And again, we're talking about now between the ports of entry. The Secretary of Majorcas has lost the narrative and I'm not sure what they're going to do next. Now, when those illegal aliens cross the border, whether it's between a port of entry or at a port of entry, walk us through just what happens. What are they given and where are they going? So once Customs and Border Protection agent encounters them, gets their biographical information, takes their photographic and a biometric. and maybe does a cursory fingerprint search. They are turned over to either a non-governmental organization or released directly onto the

streets many times if that's the case, an NGO will still pick them up. And in the case of unaccompanied children, they are turned over to health and human services. But again, NGOs then step in and help with health and human services and unaccompanied children. So then those NGOs will transport the alien wherever they want to go in the U.S. And they are resettling everywhere. And so then they basically disappear. They are often given a piece of paper from CBP saying reports to an immigration court on such a date and such and such a city. But it's often many months, if not years, down the road.

And so in many cases, these people are never seen again. Are they given any form of work authorization? Well, if they're paroled, yes, they can apply for work authorization. And so then they get that work permit, which is really the name of the game for the migrants coming here. Most will tell reporters that they're coming here for opportunity for economic reasons. They're not really coming because they've been persecuted. And so that results in a lot of asylum fraud, but they simply file asylum applications. because it buys them time, and it also will get them a work permit after six months.

So there's lots of ways to exploit the system, unfortunately, and people do it. Well, we really are seeing so many communities across America being affected by what's happening at the southern border, especially in Democrat-run cities, like New York. We just recently saw in New York City near Eric Adams. He warned that the number of illegal aliens arriving in the Big Apple will, in his own work, destroy New York City. Laura, are Democrats waking up to the crisis on the southern border? They are facing the cold reality of mass illegal immigration,

despite their idealistic but virtue signaling sanctuary policies. And this just shows how empty those sanctuary policy virtue signaling is. Yes, he's already directed every department within the U.S. or the New York City government to slash its budget by at least 5%. And so yet he complains about this, and he has yet to denounce or reverse that sanctuary policy. He's asked the federal government for more money, but he's also asked the federal government to accelerate the work permit,

which is exactly the wrong thing to do, because then you're giving the illegal aliens exactly what they want, and you are encouraging even more future legal immigration. So he is rather conflicted. But it does put a spotlight on him and other mayors who are complaining about it, and it puts a spotlight on this very real issue, which unfortunately, although the numbers are so high and throughout the country, a lot of Americans aren't seeing it because mainstream media hasn't been reporting on it.

If nothing changes at our southern border during this country, current administration. If we keep the status quo to the end of the current Biden administration, where does that leave us as a country? It leads us with millions more in the population, and it leaves us in even more debt. You cannot have open borders and a welfare state. and New York City is the microcosm of it. And frankly, New York City, the numbers it has received is a drop in the bucket compared to say what Texas has received. So this is not sustainable.

And until politicians hear from their constituents and understand that their political power is in jeopardy, they're not going to change court. Yeah. Well, Laura, we want to thank you for the work that you and your team do at the Heritage Foundation and want to direct and encourage everyone to check out the website Ourbordercrisis.com. There are so many resources there that really tackle in depth. The current situation at the southern border, we also have our documentary there telling the story of

Elisa Tambunga and how the border crisis affected her and her family in such a tragic way. So again, that website is Ourbordercrisis.com. But Laura, thank you so much for your time today. We really appreciate it. Thank you, Virginia. And with that, that's going to do it for today's episode. Thanks so much for joining us here on the Daily Signal podcast. If you haven't had the chance, make sure that you check out our evening show right here in the same podcast feed. Also make sure to take a moment to subscribe to the Daily Sittle podcast wherever you like to listen

and help us reach more listeners by leaving a five-star rating and review. Thanks again for being with us today. And we'll see you right back here around 5 p.m. for our top news edition. The Daily Signal podcast is brought to by more than half a million members of the Heritage Foundation. Executive producers are Rob Lewy and Kate Trinko. Producers are Virginia Allen and Samantha Asheras. Sound designed by Lauren Evans, Mark Geinney, and John Pop. To learn more, please visit DailySignal.com.