The US-Mexico border is still grappling with an influx of migrants, putting a strain on authorities. Meanwhile, US cities that are receiving a large number of asylum-seekers are also facing significant challenges.
Buses have been using transit points in New Jersey to bypass new regulations designed to control the influx of people into New York City. Over the weekend, it was reported that at least four buses made stops at the Secaucus Junction train station in New Jersey, as stated in a news release by the mayor of Secaucus.
According to Michael Gonnelli, the migrants were dropped off at the train station and then proceeded to take trains to New York City. It appears that train tickets are being arranged for the migrants, allowing them to travel to their intended destination.
According to him, it seems that bus operators have found a way to exploit a loophole in the system to ensure that migrants are able to reach their ultimate destination, which is New York City.
Last week, Mayor Eric Adams of New York City issued an order that mandates charter bus companies to submit passenger manifests to city emergency management officials. These manifests should include information about the passengers as well as their expected drop-off times and locations. The deadline for submission is at least 32 hours prior to their arrival.
In response to Texas and other Republican-led states’ ongoing efforts to transport migrants and asylum-seekers to Democratic cities without prior notice, Adams has issued an order. This initiative has been going on for months, with tens of thousands of individuals being sent via planes and buses to major cities with Democratic mayors.
On Tuesday, the New York mayor responded to the weekend drop-offs and denied that the executive order was “backfiring”. Adams and his team are actively exploring all options to address the crisis, including scheduling a meeting with New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy. However, Adams did not provide any specific details regarding the date or time of the meeting with Murphy.
The office of emergency management in Jersey City was informed that around 10 buses from different locations in Texas and one from Louisiana have arrived at various transit stations throughout the state, including Secaucus, Fanwood, Edison, and Trenton. The buses were carrying nearly 400 migrants, as reported on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Sunday.
According to Adams, last week, New York City saw a significant increase in new arrivals, with more than 14,700 migrants coming in within the last month. He further noted that the city experienced its highest number of arrivals in a single night, with 14 chartered buses arriving from Texas.
According to GOP Gov. Greg Abbott, Texas has transported over 33,600 migrants to New York City since August 2022.
According to a spokesperson from New York City Hall, Abbott is still using asylum seekers as political pawns. However, instead of detaining them, he is now leaving families in surrounding cities and states during the late hours of the night. They are then given train tickets to travel to New York City.
According to the spokesperson, the reason for coordinating with surrounding cities and counties was to encourage them to take similar executive action in order to protect migrants from cruelty.
CNN has contacted New Jersey Gov. Murphy for a response.
In December, US-Mexico border authorities encountered over 225,000 migrants, marking the highest monthly total since 2000, as revealed by preliminary Homeland Security statistics shared with CNN. Additionally, there has been an influx of arrivals in the New York area.
According to a senior administration official, the number of migrants encountered by border authorities on Monday was around 2,500. This represents a significant decrease compared to mid-December when daily arrests surpassed 10,000. In the Del Rio sector, less than 500 migrants were apprehended on Monday, which is a significant drop from the thousands of arrivals it experienced in late December.
According to the official, it is important to acknowledge that the numbers of encounters at the border are expected to keep changing. They have observed fluctuations in encounter figures over the past year, with some periods experiencing an increase while others have seen a decrease.
Over the weekend, Rockford International Airport in Illinois saw the arrival of hundreds of asylum-seekers. This marked the second occasion where Texas Governor, Brandon Johnson, a Democrat, transported asylum-seekers via private plane.
The migrants reached their destination in Chicago after arriving at around 1 a.m. on Sunday. They were then transported to the city via buses.
City officials have announced that if more flights land in Rockford, they will activate their Emergency Operations Center. This step will be taken to effectively coordinate logistics and planning in order to ensure the safety of all involved. The announcement was made on Facebook.
According to a news release from Abbott, Texas has sent over 28,000 asylum-seekers to the Chicago area since August 2022.
Chicago is facing an “unsustainable” situation that is deemed as an international and federal crisis, with local governments being burdened with the responsibility of subsidizing it, according to Johnson on CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday.
Chicago is now taking action against “rogue buses” from Texas that are dropping off migrants throughout the city. A new city ordinance has been implemented, allowing for the impounding and towing of these buses.
Senator cites border crisis in delaying aid to Ukraine and Israel
According to Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, the border crisis is not only impacting the United States domestically but also having diplomatic ramifications. Graham stated that Republicans will not support aid to Ukraine and Israel unless there is a simultaneous agreement on border security.
During an interview on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” the speaker expressed a strong desire to assist Ukraine. However, he emphasized the importance of Ukraine taking action to help themselves before external aid can be provided. He further emphasized that it would be difficult to justify providing assistance to Ukraine and other countries like Israel if their borders remain insecure.
Graham referred to the border crisis as a “national security nightmare for America” and expressed his hope that Republicans will support negotiations aimed at providing aid.
Negotiators are planning to make a request to the Biden administration, asking them to utilize Title 42, a pandemic-era restriction that was previously employed to quickly reject migrants at the border but has now expired. The purpose of this request is to deport individuals who are crossing the border. The senator also mentioned that if former President Donald Trump were to be reelected, there would be a significant increase in the deportation of migrants.
Mexican leaders are scheduled to visit Washington in January to meet with officials from the Biden administration. The purpose of the meeting is to continue discussions on finding ways to reduce the influx of migration into the United States.
During the visit, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas led a high-level US delegation to Mexico City. This visit resulted in some progress being made in terms of enhancing enforcement on the Mexican side of the border.
According to a spokesperson for the National Security Council, the trip was described as “productive” and Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has implemented significant new measures to address migration.
The National Security Council has announced that the meeting in Washington will focus on assessing progress and determining additional actions that can be taken.
According to CNN, officials from the Biden administration have expressed their optimism regarding the ongoing border negotiations in Congress. They are pleased with the progress being made in these discussions.
Mexico has taken several actions to address the issue of migration to the US border. These include increasing enforcement on trains and buses, which are commonly used by migrants for quick transportation. Mexico has also worked to decongest its northern border and has repatriated Venezuelans. These efforts are aimed at addressing the challenges posed by migration.
US House Speaker Mike Johnson, along with other Republican lawmakers, plans to visit the Texas-Mexico border on Wednesday.
US Customs and Border Protection is set to resume operations at several ports of entry on Thursday. These include the Eagle Pass International Bridge One, the San Ysidro pedestrian west crossing in California, the Lukeville port of entry in Arizona, and the Nogales Morley gate border crossing.
CNN journalists Kevin Liptak, Sarah Dewberry, Casey Gannon, Michelle Watson, Mark Morales, Priscilla Alvarez, and Zoe Sottile made significant contributions to this report.
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