President Joe Biden made unexpected headlines this week by launching a new initiative that will see Venezuelan migrants turned away at the southern border — but some critics say there’s more show than substance to the program.
The Department of Homeland Security announced Thursday that Venezuelans entering the United States illegally will be returned to Mexico as a way to reduce the number of people arriving at the border. The move seemed to be a response to pleas from border state politicians to stem the tide of illegal migration.
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“These actions make clear that there is a lawful and orderly way for Venezuelans to enter the United States, and lawful entry is the only way,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement. “Those who attempt to cross the southern border of the United States illegally will be returned to Mexico and will be ineligible for this process in the future. Those who follow the lawful process will have the opportunity to travel safely to the United States and become eligible to work here.”
The southern border has been a hot issue on the Right since Biden took office, with GOP Govs. Doug Ducey (R-AZ), Greg Abbott (R-TX), and Ron DeSantis (R-FL) attracting headlines in recent months with taxpayer-funded buses and planes sending volunteer migrants to places like Washington, D.C., Chicago, and Martha’s Vineyard.
Biden’s approval rating on immigration is just 35.3%, per the RealClearPolitics average, which is lower than his overall approval rating. The president ended the Trump-era “Remain in Mexico” policy upon taking office, and migrant encounters have surged.
Since January 2021, the number of noncitizens apprehended attempting to enter the country or denied admission at a port of entry has increased threefold, reaching over 200,000 encounters per month on several occasions. More than 2 million migrant encounters have taken place this fiscal year.
The DHS move may be one sign that the administration is finally listening. As part of the deal, the U.S. will collaborate with Mexico to target human smuggling operations, according to a press release, with new migration checkpoints, additional resources and personnel, and “joint targeting” of human smuggling organizations.
The move would seem to align with the wishes of figures like Abbott.
“Cartels are using social media to recruit drivers for human smuggling operations, like this one in Hidalgo Co.,” he tweeted the same day as the DHS announcement. “Until Pres. Biden cracks down on cartels & secures the border, Texas will respond in full force to prevent the smuggling of people into Texas.”
But many conservatives are skeptical, seeing the move as a midterm ploy that will have little real-world effect.
“Biden cares more about performative politics and his party’s midterm chances than he does saving lives and addressing the humanitarian crisis Democrats created at the southern border,” said Republican National Committee spokesman Will O’Grady. “There is no quick fix to this problem — but new leadership would be a solid start. Also, where is Kamala Harris?”
Harris was set to lead the Biden administration‘s efforts on the border but has not been a strong presence there. She has mostly focused on the root causes of immigration, visiting the border only once and skipping the area during a trip to Texas last weekend.
Beyond the optics, critics say the new program will not be effective, as it only affects immigrants from Venezuela and will also allow 24,000 migrants from that country to apply for a parole program.
The Heritage Foundation’s Lora Ries describes it as a signal rather than a major substantive change.
“This administration is dealing with the border crisis by whack-a-mole,” said Ries, director of the conservative think tank’s Border Security and Immigration Center. “We’ve got Operation Allies Welcome for Afghanistan refugees, then they created the Uniting for Ukraine program, and now the volunteering for Venezuela program. They’re creating new programs instead of sticking to preexisting avenues in the law, namely our Refugee Admissions Programs.”
The program has also drawn criticism from the other side, with Venezuelan American Alliance President Maria Antonietta Diaz telling the Wall Street Journal that “a quota of 24,000 is not enough” and promising to demonstrate the need for a higher number.
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Biden is keenly aware of the criticism he’d receive if he took strong action to secure the border, Ries previously told the Washington Examiner, saying the president has decided he’d rather get beat up by the Right than by the Left on the issue.
Yet some Democrats are also beginning to sound the alarm. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) placed responsibility squarely on Biden and his administration to tackle an influx of immigrants coming to her state.
Describing the situation as a worsening “humanitarian crisis,” Hochul lamented a lack of federal action to address the declining situation.
“We really are looking for a federal response to this, to take ownership of a crisis, and we’ll be there to help,” she said. “But this belongs to the federal government.”
