The detriment to “national sovereignty, border security, and the safety of American citizens” caused by ending Title 42 “cannot be overstated,” warned Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton who slammed President Biden for “prioritizing an open-borders agenda above any semblance of border security.”
In an exclusive statement to Breitbart News on Thursday, Paxton lamented the lifting of the Title 42 Trump-era public health policy that allows for the immediate expulsion of migrants without allowing them to seek asylum.
The reversal of the Biden administration’s Title 42 COVID-19 expulsion authority, due for Friday, is expected to spur a wave of migration at the southern border.
It will also mark the final departure from any enforcement policies enacted under the Trump administration that saw migrant crossing numbers drop rapidly in late 2019 and 2020.
FAIR AT THE BORDER
Happening now – gates are open, Border Patrol is escorting migrants through pic.twitter.com/MF4KaQ4Oca
— FAIR (@FAIRImmigration) May 10, 2023
The Texas AG called the program “one of the few remaining tools that could be used to stop the seemingly never-ending flood of illegal immigrants pouring across our southern border.”
“Now, along with nearly every other measure that could be used to stop illegal immigration, the Biden administration is removing that deterrent,” he stated.
Paxton emphasized that “it cannot be overstated how detrimental Title 42’s ending is for our national sovereignty, border security, and the safety of American citizens.”
“It defies all logic for the Biden administration to end Title 42, but prioritizing an open-borders agenda above any semblance of border security has consistently been a defining hallmark of this administration,” he said.
WATCH: Texas Military, State Police Turn Back Migrants Attempting Border Crossing:
The attorney general concluded by assuring that the Lone Star State would do “everything” in its capacity to ensure the safety of its residents.
“Despite the chaos on our southern border continuing to get worse under Joe Biden’s watch, the State of Texas will continue to do everything within our authority to protect the people of Texas and stop illegal immigration,” he stated.
The Biden administration continues to face criticism over its open border policies, with the surge of migrant crossings only expected to increase following the termination of the Title 42 migrant removal protocol.
A caravan of as many as 15,000 migrants has begun marching from southern Mexico to the US border. Some are hoping for a swift entry to the US as Joe Biden seems keen to enroll these immigrants as voting Democrats. pic.twitter.com/YD52rJy6hx
— Rakesh Krishnan Simha (@ByRakeshSimha) May 8, 2023
Without the policy in effect, Biden officials have admitted that up to half a million border crossers and illegal aliens — the equivalent of the population of Atlanta, Georgia — could arrive at the border each month.
The United States continues to face record-high levels of illegal immigration, with over 844,000 migrants either apprehended after crossing the southwest border or classified as “got-aways” during the first quarter of fiscal year 2023.
In nearly the first two years under the Biden administration, Border Patrol agents have apprehended a record-setting 4.2 million migrants.
In February, Paxton criticized President Biden for using taxpayer funds to welcome scores aliens into the United States:
Instead of rolling out the red carpet for hundreds of thousands of aliens and using taxpayer dollars to bring them into the country, Joe Biden should be focused on securing our border. This illegal parole program is yet another example of Biden and Mayorkas’s desperation to ignore our nation’s laws to advance an open-borders agenda. Though nothing about the lawlessness of the Biden Administration has indicated that it even remotely cares about protecting our sovereignty and bolstering our border security, I will continue to sue to hold them to their duty to obey the law and protect American citizens.
The previous month, the Texas Attorney General rebuked the president for claiming king-level authority to ignore Congress’ annual migration numbers:
“Hey, Mr. President, again, just a reminder: You’re a president, you’re not a dictator, not a king. You have to follow the rules, the laws, just like everybody else,” Paxton said.
RELATED: DHS Chief Mayorkas Refuses to Recognize Cost of Illegal Immigration to American Citizens:
CBS NewsFollow Joshua Klein on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.
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