A convoy of around 2,000 migrants from countries like Haiti, Honduras, and Venezuela is currently making its way towards the United States border from Mexico. Concerned about potential changes in immigration policies, they have chosen to depart before the upcoming U.S. election.
“No matter who wins the election, they should not shut their doors on us; they should provide us with the support we need,” said a young man from Venezuela while walking. “Because not only us, but many others are going through difficult times. We want to fight for a better future for our families under the regime in Venezuela.”
According to Fox News, former U.S. National Border Patrol Council Chairman, Brandon Judd, stated, “This shows how smart the cartels are and the danger our border faces in dealing with criminal organizations smuggling people illegally. They realize they need to profit as much as possible. The policies of this administration clearly allowed them to make unprecedented profits, and it will be difficult for them once Trump is re-elected.”
Judd believes that the Democratic Party believes in open borders to gain more grassroots support, putting personal desires above national interests. “We need legislative action from Congress, not the legislation Vice President Kamala Harris has been talking about,” he said.
Earlier this week in Texas, officials discovered a large group of illegal immigrants, including 32 unaccompanied minors and 7 “special interest migrants” from Iran and Africa—countries posing potential national security risks to the U.S.
According to CBS News, just this month, two separate migrant groups of 800 people and 600 people respectively departed from Mexico towards the United States, hoping to reach the border before the election.
San Diego County in California, located at the border, has long been a popular point for illegal entry. From the 6th to the 12th of this month, a total of 3,016 immigrants from 59 countries were arrested in the county, including 96 unaccompanied minors. Apart from crossing overland, some arrived by boat.
Local government officials stated that the federal government has been transporting out of state the illegal immigrants arrested in California via buses and planes, rather than releasing them onto the streets—fearing it could worsen the situation before the November election.
San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond mentioned that the Border Patrol informed him that the releasing of migrants’ work may resume shortly. He told Fox that from September of last year to June of this year, approximately 155,000 illegal immigrants were released in the county. These people were mass-released onto the streets of San Diego, overwhelming local government services and resources.
Desmond noted that currently, three buses depart from the county daily, transporting migrants to Yuma, Arizona, while three to four planes weekly fly illegal immigrants to McAllen, a border city in Texas, where facilities are not adequate.
“The federal government seems to be trying to cover up the situation by transporting people away by bus instead of releasing them on the streets,” Desmond believes that releasing more people on-site is politically harmful, so the current administration may wait until after the election to do so.
San Diego County has spent millions of taxpayers’ dollars to establish an immigrant detention facility, but now the funds have run out, and there is no place to accommodate the increasing number of migrants detained by the Border Patrol.
Hundreds of illegal immigrants recently released from detention are boarding buses provided by non-governmental organizations or volunteers, heading to various locations across the United States. Some of these individuals are from Peru, Ecuador, Senegal, the Dominican Republic, and Colombia, destined to work in Atlanta, Minneapolis, New York, New Jersey, Chicago, and other places. ◇