Texas Border Business
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) discussed the impending expiration of Title 42 and his plan to introduce a Congressional Review Act resolution of disapproval that would strike down President Biden’s unconstitutional “Circumvention of Lawful Pathways” rule, which will parole more migrants into the country without Congress’ consent. Excerpts of Sen. Cornyn’s remarks are below, and video can be found here.
“Title 42, the COVID-19 public health law used by the Border Patrol to expel people at the southern border, will expire at midnight tonight, and our border communities… are bracing for a tsunami of humanity.”
“On the eve of this looming crisis and catastrophe after the end of Title 42, the administration has rolled out something they call the ‘Circumvention of Lawful Pathways’ rule. The problem is, the Constitution does not give the Executive Branch – the President of the United States – the power to write immigration laws or to stand up new pathways for legal status.”
“The broad goal, plainly, is to ensure a more orderly asylum process by reducing the number of border crossings between ports of entry and encouraging migrants to seek asylum at ports. Well, if that were actually what was going to happen, that would be an improvement.”
“The truth is, they have no commitment to an orderly, lawful, and humane system of immigration. The Biden plan includes broad exemptions for migrants who show up at a port of entry without an appointment and are illiterate, or at least claim to be. It provides an exception for migrants who can’t access the DHS scheduling system or who experience technical issues with the notoriously glitchy CBP One app. The Department all but admits that these migrants will be paroled.”
“The Biden administration has provided the cartels with a road map or a playbook.”
“Migrants can make the dangerous journey to the border, show up without an appointment, say the magic words, and still be paroled into the United States.”
“The ‘Circumvention of Lawful Pathways’ rule is dangerous and unconstitutional, and I’m in the process of introducing a Congressional Review Act resolution to disapprove of it. This rule would rapidly increase the number of migrants being paroled in the United States, while doing nothing – zero – to deter migrants with weak asylum claims.”
“Rather than stand up new facilities or hire more personnel to make the expedited removal process function, the Biden administration has instead chosen to release people into the interior of the country at an unprecedented pace. Where the expedited removal serves as a deterrent, President Biden’s wide-scale catch and release is a magnet.”
“The pace is going to do nothing but accelerate once Title 42 goes away at midnight tonight. This administration needs to get serious about expedited removals, about using the tools that are already available.”
Senator John Cornyn, a Republican from Texas, is a member of the Senate Finance, Intelligence, and Judiciary Committees.
