President Joe Biden came under criticism following the release of a new report noting that the number of undocumented migrants that have crossed into the United States has doubled in recent years.
"The Coast Guard interdicted more than 12,000 migrants in both fiscal year 2022 and 2023 – more than double the fiscal year 2021 total, according to Coast Guard data," Heather MacLeod, director of Homeland Security and Justice at the Government Accountability Office, said in prepared testimony last week.
According to The Center Square, MacLoad noted that the number is expected to increase.
Meanwhile, House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green, R-Tenn. warned that Biden’s immigration policies pose a threat to U.S. servicemembers.
"Historic numbers of encounters at our Southwest border are certainly the main driver of this unprecedented crisis, but they aren’t the only one," Green told The Center Square. "Illegal aliens also try to take advantage of America’s maritime borders. This route is incredibly dangerous for not only the aliens but also the men and women of the U.S. Coast Guard and the Air and Marine Operations officers tasked with interdicting the flow of illegal immigration and deadly narcotics along these routes."
Green denounced Biden for the immigrant crisis at the southern border, in which about 10 million immigrants have entered the nation since January of 2021 after Biden took office, Just The News reports.
"Every day, the Coast Guard plays a crucial role in securing our waterways, and it is unconscionable that Secretary Mayorkas and President Biden continue to make their job harder through their policies of mass catch-and-release that have encouraged more individuals to attempt this route and emboldened the cartels to traffic more drugs," Green said.
Although the majority of migrant crossings have been on land, water transport could allow for groups to carry more illegal drugs.
Rear Admiral Jo-Ann Burdian, Assistant Commandant for Response Policy at the U.S. Coast Guard, also expressed concern about transnational criminal organizations contributing to the drug crisis in the U.S. For instance, tens of thousands of Americans have died from fentanyl in the past several years.
"They traffic drugs, weapons, wildlife, and humans, which causes instability and violence in Central America, the Caribbean, and elsewhere, driving irregular migration to the United States," Burdian testified. "Illicit drugs destined for the United States devastate American families, leading to record-setting drug-related deaths in recent years.
"Drug trafficking also destabilizes nations in the region, undermines the rule of law, threatens citizens, and drives individuals, families, and unaccompanied children to migrate to the United States."
Photo Courtesy: ©Pixabay/hasan-cilingir
Video Courtesy: NBC News via YouTube
Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.
