The Department of Homeland Security revealed that it sent more than 200,000 immigrants in a controversial parole program to 45 cities in the United States between January and August 2023.
The policy, which was enacted in October 2022, allowed a limited number of migrants who had not entered the country illegally to fly directly to the United States.
Immigrants were also required to have a sponsor in the United States and pass several screening tests.
It was initially announced for Venezuelans, before adding Haitians, Nicaraguans and Cubans amid one of the worst migration crises in US history under President Joe Biden and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
About 80 percent of the immigrants were sent to four cities in the state of Florida: Miami, which received 91,821, more than any other city; Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and Tampa Bay are among the top 15 destinations, according to the DHS.
The Department of Homeland Security revealed that it sent more than 200,000 migrants in a controversial parole program to 45 cities in the United States between January and August 2023.
It was initially announced for Venezuelans, before adding Haitians, Nicaraguans and Cubans amid one of the worst migration crises in US history under President Joe Biden and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
Secretary Mayorkas, under fire, says the program led to a reduction in the number of people from those nations crossing the border illegally.
“It is a key element of our efforts to address the unprecedented level of migration across our hemisphere, and other countries around the world see it as a model for meeting the challenge of increased irregular migration that they are also experiencing,” he said. Mayorkas.
New York City, Houston, Los Angeles and San Francisco also made the top 10 destinations.
Another 1.6 million immigrants are waiting to enter the country through this same program, DHS says.
Several states, including Florida, have attempted to sue to stop the program, but have so far been unsuccessful.
‘Biden’s parole program is illegal and constitutes an abuse of constitutional authority. “Florida is currently suing Biden to shut it down, and we believe we will prevail,” said Gov. Ron DeSantis press secretary Jeremy Redfern.
Since Biden took office, the United States has experienced a record number of illegal border crossings.
Customs and Border Protection has detained more than 7.6 million migrants illegally crossing the southern border, most of whom are traveling from countries in Central and South America in an effort to seek asylum in the US. .
Secretary Mayorkas, under fire, says the problem led to a reduction in the number of people from those nations crossing the border illegally.
The crisis at the border has been a scandal for the Biden administration throughout its presidency, and former president and 2024 opponent Donald Trump has promised to fix the problem.
Trump is ready to reshape American politics and it is detailed in interviews with TIME magazine what some of these broad reforms would include.
In a wide-ranging interview at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, on April 12, the former president confirmed that he would use detention camps to house illegal immigrants during deportation efforts.
He also did not rule out deploying the army to stop the millions of undocumented immigrants living in the country. As of January 2022, the illegal immigrant population in the United States was estimated to be 11.35 million.
Trump has repeatedly said he would take aggressive steps to address the border issue on the first day of his second term after President Joe Biden reversed nearly all of his policies and plunged the country into a full-blown illegal immigration crisis.
His proposals would include using local authorities, the National Guard and, if necessary, members of the US military to arrest illegal immigrants and deport them.
TIME National Politics Reporter Eric Cortellessa asked Trump if he would repeal the Posse Comitatus Act, which states that the U.S. military cannot be deployed against civilians.
“Well, these are not civilians,” the former president responded. ‘These are people who are not legally in our country. This is an invasion of our country. An invasion like no country has probably seen before.
“They are arriving by the millions. I think we have 15 million now. And I think you’ll have 20 million when this is over,’ Trump predicted. “And that’s bigger than almost all the states.”
He also said he is not likely to have to house these migrants in detention camps because he plans to quickly deport them, but did not rule out building more detention centers if necessary during the operation.
“No, I wouldn’t rule anything out,” Trump said. “But there wouldn’t be as much need for them.” [detention camps], due to the fact that we are going to take them out. “We are going to bring them back from where they came from.”