Republicans ‘congratulate’ Biden on first border trip, but send him off with list of demands
Anna Giaritelli
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EXCLUSIVE — More than a dozen House Republicans praised President Joe Biden for making time ahead of his international trip to visit the U.S.-Mexico border but sent him off with a long list of expectations.
Led by first-term Texas border Rep. Monica De La Cruz, the 14 Texas Republicans urged Biden to make demands during his meeting with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador in Mexico City this week based on what he learns in El Paso, Texas, on Sunday.
“We congratulate you on visiting the U.S.-Mexico border for the first time,” the lawmakers wrote in a letter sent Friday and shared exclusively with the Washington Examiner.
“On the eve of your trip to the United States-Mexico border and to Mexico City for the North American Leaders Summit, we write to ask and insist that you take concrete actions to secure our southern border to stem the flow of illegal immigration and drugs that continues to catastrophically affect the great state of Texas and the country,” the lawmakers wrote.
Republicans and border Democrats Reps. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) and Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX) have pushed Biden countless times over the past two years to visit the southern border. In that time, the number of illegal crossing encounters rose from 75,000 per month when Biden took office to more than 280,000 in November.
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Since January 2021, approximately 5 million immigrants have been encountered trying to enter the U.S. without permission — more than the total from former President Barack Obama’s eight years in office.
Republicans have blamed the White House for the crisis, linking Biden’s walking back Trump administration policies at the border to the influx of illegal immigrants attempting to cross. With the House in disarray this week due to a prolonged GOP speakership fight not seen since before the Civil War, Biden capitalized on the political moment to take the lead on immigration issues.
Ahead of the border trip, Biden announced a host of new immigration measures designed to stem the record flow of illegal crossings. The effort was met with skepticism from border hawks, while progressive Democrats, including Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), snapped at him over his administration’s decision to send more illegal immigrants back to Mexico.
The Texas GOP coalition gave Biden marching orders for his trip to West Texas and in talks with the Mexican leader. They called for Biden to meet with the Americans “directly affected” by the border crisis, namely Border Patrol agents, ranchers, business owners, and the family members who have lost loved ones to drug overdoses.
“It is crucial to discuss bilateral policies that will strengthen the national security of both nations and ensure the well-being of the American and Mexican people,” the lawmakers wrote. “Such policy discussions include deporting those bound for the United States before they reach our border, increasing bilateral cooperation and efforts to counter cartel and human smuggling networks, and ensuring that Mexico accepts the repatriation of those ordered deported by U.S. immigration courts.”
Republicans also called on Biden to pressure Mexico to block the precursor ingredients of fentanyl that are shipped in from labs in China.
“We urge you to work with President López Obrador to reinstate the Migrant Protection Protocols and ensure the safety of those waiting in Mexico to have their immigration cases heard,” the letter read.
The MPP, also known as the “Remain in Mexico” policy, required immigrants who wanted to make an asylum claim to live in Mexico for weeks to months until they could have their day in U.S. court.
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The 14 Republicans who signed the letter were De La Cruz and fellow GOP Reps. Michael Burgess, John Carter, Beth Van Duyne, Pete Sessions, Brian Babin, Lance Gooden, August Pfluger, Dan Crenshaw, Nathaniel Moran, Michael McCaul, Ronny Jackson, Jodey Arrington, and Kay Granger.