Earlier this week, in an interview with Spanish network Univision, interviewer Enrique Acevedo asked Biden if he has made a final decision about using an executive order to shut down the U.S.-Mexico border.
With polls looking bad for him, and days clicking off the calendar in an election year, Biden may now be ready to address the border.
I
n the interview, the President told Acevedo he himself had suggested the possibility of executive action but wasn't so sure he has the legal authority to sign his name.
“We're examining whether or not I have that power," Biden, in a rambling reply, commented. "I would have that power under the legislation. When the border has over five-5,000 people a day trying to cross the border, because you can't manage it, slow it up, there's no-there's no guarantee that I have that power all by myself without legislation. And some have suggested I should just go ahead and try it."
Biden added his executive action might got struck down by a court but he is trying to "work through that" right now.
Biden signed 94 executive orders in first 100 days
The New York Post has a phrase for Biden’s evaluation of presidential powers: Utter baloney.
Considering the President signed numerous executive orders to reverse President Trump's policies, Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee) is similarly quite sure Biden has the authority.
“He used that executive authority when he executed 94 executive orders in the first 100 days of his administration to further open the border and to weaken immigration law. So an open border is Joe Biden’s border policy now," Blackburn said on Washington Watch Wednesday.
Only because an election is coming, she added, is the White House now discussing action.
Immigration has replaced inflation as voters’ top concern, according to a Harvard CAPS-Harris poll.
Since Biden took office in 2021 and reversed Trump's immigration policies, an estimated 10 million-plus have violated U.S. immigration laws to enter the country and then remain here without fear of being deported.
After welcoming millions of illegal aliens, the Biden administration has also encouraged illegals to use a phone app to enter the U.S. and has released more than 2 million illegals into the country.
The figures do not include the “gotaways” who avoided agents and entered on their own accord.
After witnessing lawlessness passed off as White House policy, Republicans in the U.S. House have prepared two articles of impeachment against Biden’s Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas.
“The American people are demanding that something be done about all the drugs, the crime, the human trafficking, the sex trafficking, the fact that every town’s a border town, every state is a border state,” Blackburn told show host Tony Perkins.
Blackburn said only now are Democrats calling the border an “untenable” situation.
There’s the feeling that Congress could act on a border bill, something that would pass even the Democrat-controlled Senate, Blackburn said.
With that in mind, the White House wants to get out in front with something they can point to for voters, she said.
“They’re desperately trying to do something before Congress does. More people are becoming aware that Joe Biden, with his pen, the stroke of his pen, opened up this border,” Blackburn said.
Trump’s border achievements
Blackburn pointed to Trump’s relationship with the Border Patrol and completion of 458 miles of border wall as significant achievements.
Another 280 miles were identified for construction but were never finished.
“Indeed, one of the very first actions (Biden) took was to stop construction on the border wall," the Republican senator pointed out. "People are saying, ‘Hey, wait a minute, you don’t need to pass another law.’ They’re starting to figure out this business about him saying, ‘Congress won’t pass another law and give me the authority.’ Well, what authority did you use when you opened up the border? Now (the White House) is beginning to think they better do something.”
There are things that can be done, Blackburn said. She introduced a bill in March, The Clear Act, aiming to give greater authority in border matters to local law enforcement and to hold Immigration Customs Enforcement officials accountable.
The bill requires DHS to provide current information on illegals to the National Crime Information Center at the Department of Justice.
State and local governments have their own information requirements after encounters will illegals.
In addition, DHS must provide grants to state and local governments to assist them in enforcing immigration laws. Further, DHS must construct or acquire increased space for detention facilities, take illegals into custody within 48 hours of a request from local government, establish a training manual for local law enforcement and expand efforts for identifying removable criminal aliens currently residing in federal and state correctional facilities.
'There are some things that can be done'
Legislation such as The Clear Act has trouble getting through the Senate and Blackburn’s bill has not.
She has pulled it back out for further study and, if necessary, revision.
“There are some things that can be done. Item No. 1 on Day 1 has to be going back to building the wall. Item No. 2 has to be looking at (Andres) Obrador in Mexico and saying, ‘These cartels are big business in your country. You better deal with them, and right away, and by the way, we’re going to institute Remain in Mexico. Those people are not going to come here, so you go and handle those cartels,’” Blackburn said.
