According to government data, southern border encounters surpassed 100,000 for the 31st straight month in August and swelled to more than 260,000 in September -- an all-time record.
During this period, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released at least 2,148,738 illegal aliens into the country. Only 5,993 encountered migrants placed in removal proceedings before an immigration judge were reportedly removed from the U.S.
If the Biden administration continues to allow this rate of illegal immigration, then a new president will face a gargantuan task when he or she takes over in January 2025. Until then, Art Arthur, a resident fellow in law and policy at the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), says there are some things that can be done.
"One of things that we saw Governor [Ron] DeSantis (R) do in Florida was to require employers to use E-Verify … an online system that … takes about two minutes to verify the employment eligibility of every new hire in the state of Florida," Arthur notes. "If you were to use that program and deny the millions of aliens who are living in the United States illegally the ability to work, they'd go home. They're coming here to work. If they can't work, they're not going to stay."
Former President Trump is also calling for deployment of the U.S. military to the southwest border "and using the Alien Act in order to deport the criminals and the cartel members and other ne'er-do-wells who have come into the United States."
Arthur thinks this open border will be Joe Biden's legacy, "one that we're going to be dealing with for years to come."
"The presidency is powerful," the CIS fellow adds. "Congress is even more powerful. They have the power to address these issues. They just need to have the will."
