Cuellar: ‘Catch and Release’ Isn’t Working, ‘the Border Is open’ and Criminals Will Exploit it Until They See Policy Change

On Tuesday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) said that “catch and release is just not working for border communities.” And despite what the Biden administration says, “the border is open,” and until criminal organizations see a policy change, they will keep telling people now is the time to come to the border.

Cuellar stated, “I hope that the Biden administration and the White House will allow Homeland Security to do what they need to do, number one. Because this catch and release is just not working for border communities. What we’re seeing in El Paso is what we’ve seen to a lesser amount — a greater amount [I should say], down in the valley, down in Eagle Pass, Del Rio, and this is only what I think is going to be — what we’re going to see next week if Title 42 is taken away. Now, we still have Title 8, which says if the White House or Homeland decides to use an expedited deportation, then we can slow this down. But the problem is this, it’s that people are coming in because they feel that the border’s open. I don’t care what the administration is saying that the border’s closed. It’s not closed. All you have to do is look at the videos that you’re playing right now and you will see that the border is open, and it’s not fair to the border communities.”

He added that “we’re just not seeing enough of that enforcement of the law and the impression is that the border’s open.” And “the criminal organizations are promoting that this is the time to come in. They make billions of dollars on getting people across, and therefore, they’re going to keep promoting this until they see that there is a different policy at the border.”

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