Border crossings are already ramping up in the days leading up to the end of Title 42, with Customs and Border Protection (CBP) arresting more than 26,000 migrants in just 72 hours.
Over the past three days, there have been an average of 8,794 migrant detentions per day, according to figures released by CBP chief Raul Ortiz.
This is a staggeringly unprecedented figure that is only expected to grow in the coming days as Title 42 expires on Thursday.
Currently, the average number of migrants crossing the southern border each day is 7,700. But the Biden administration estimates the number could increase to 13,000 a day once Title 42 is no longer in use. Other outside estimates have put that number even higher.
Smugglers encourage migrants to go to the border.
Customs and Border Guards arrested 26,382 migrants in the past 72 hours – a staggering unprecedented average of 8,794 per day
They claim the end of Title 42 will make it easier to cross — even though the Biden administration wants to enact strict regulations to speed up deportations and ban the return of illegal crossings for up to five years.
Health-related immigration policies were first enacted at the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 by then-President Donald Trump. Title 42 allowed immigration and border authorities to immediately deport migrants without hearing their asylum applications during the declared health emergency.
In preparation for mass surges at the border coming Thursday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott deployed the newly formed Tactical Border Force on Monday, along with the National Guard already in place and the 1,500 active troops announced last week by President Joe Biden. deployed.
Chief Ortiz revealed in a tweet Monday that CBP has been able to identify 7,399 “breakaways” in the past 72 hours and seized 329 pounds of various drugs, including fentanyl, meth and heroin.
He also noted that they apprehended one felon, one gang member and three sex offenders over the weekend.
The elite Texas National Guard’s Tactical Border Force will be deployed Monday in preparation for the end of Title 42 on Thursday as the state with the most miles on its southern border braces for 13,000 migrant crossings a day once the policy at the time of the pandemic ends.
Meanwhile, footage surfaced of thousands of migrants lined up at the southern end of the US-Mexico border, waiting for Title 42 to end on May 11.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Monday is deploying the newly formed Texas Tactical Border Force to help manage “hot spots” on the southern border with the imminent end of Title 42
As Title 42 expires on Thursday, May 11, migrants will be lining up at the southern border to immediately enter the US once the policy is no longer in use. Pictured: Hundreds of migrants arrived in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, on Sunday, May 7, to cross the border into El Paso, Texas
“The Biden administration has been a disaster, ripping up policies that led to the lowest number of illegal border crossings in decades,” Abbott told Fox & Friends Monday morning.
He continued, “We are deploying a new Texas Tactical Border Force today, made up of elite National Guard trained for one thing, and that is to identify areas where illegal immigrants are trying to cross the border and fill that gap and to repel them. to deny them entry to the United States.”
“They can do it in several ways: physically turn back those who try to come over illegally, and they build direct border barriers that prevent people from crossing the border,” the Texas governor continued. “And you saw an early replay of this when you saw long lines of people in El Paso in 24 hours.”
Abbott insists that a border barrier must be completed to stop the influx of migrants ‘immediately’.
Title 42 was first passed in 1944 and was passed in 2020 by then-President Donald Trump at the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
The policy allows immigration and border officials to immediately deport migrants without hearing their asylum applications during a public health emergency. Specifically, the original law aims to stop entry for those who can evade health screenings by crossing illegally.
Some reports indicate that between 700,000 and 1 million migrants could cross in the days following the end of the pandemic deportation policy.
Abbott noted Monday morning that his state is continuing to “build as many barriers as possible very quickly to send as many people back as possible.”
Texas National Guard soldiers have been manning the border for the past several years, but the military presence will now be even more prominent as it’s all hands on deck for the end of Title 42.
Gov. Abbott shakes hands with members of the Texas National Guard on Monday, May 8 in Austin, Texas, as they prepare to head to the southern border to provide assistance as Title 42 ends in just three days
Thousands of migrants have made the perilous journey to the southern US border in recent years by jumping on moving trains
“We are deploying a new Texas Tactical Border Force today, made up of elite National Guards trained for one thing, and that is to identify areas where illegal immigrants are trying to cross the border and fill that gap and deter them.” to deny them entry into the United States,” Abbott told Fox & Friends Monday morning
Illegal immigration and illegal border crossings have reached an all-time high under the leadership of President Biden and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas.
“So as you all, and everyone knows, what Mayorkas said — he said the border is closed,” Abbott said of his conversations with the DHS head.
“So yes, I spoke to Mayorkas a few times. And every time I’ve talked to him, he keeps sticking his head in the sand. He’s lying or really doesn’t know what’s going on, because the border isn’t closed.’
He added: “They are doing nothing to stop it and all the policies the Biden administration tried to put in place will only entice more people to cross the border.”
Independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, who also represents an Arizona border state, said on Sunday she has almost no communication with Mayorkas.