Why does Ducey have the right to build a border wall? (Review with Raul A. Reyes, PH.D., Editor’s Note)

The note was Editor’s Note. Raul A. Reyes is an attorney and a member of the USA Today board of contributors. Follow him on Twitter @RaulAReyes. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his own. You can give more opinion on CNN.

The governor does not have legal authority to build a border wall. It isn’t clear how she will get rid of the multi-ton containers, due to the fact that Ducey will only be in office until January 5. So he’s saddling her with the task of cleaning up his mess.

Still, Ducey does not have the right to commandeer border policy, let alone interfere with migrants’ lawful right to claim asylum. There are some gaps along the border in Arizona, and the Biden administration has a plan to close them.

The Associated Press estimates that Ducey’s current efforts will cost about $95 million. That’s a lot of money to spend on a structure that is really no barrier to potential border-crossers. Photos show that the wall is easy to scale and that there are gaps between the containers.

Ducey’s wall is also potentially dangerous. In August, a report on two containers tipping over likely came from strong winds. This represents a danger to migrants, border patrol agents and firefighters in the area. Would Ducey take responsibility if another container tipped and injured or killed someone?

Reply to the ‘Comment on ‘Gravitating the Border Wall’ by Thom Tillis and Kyrsten Sinema

The document states that the southern border has received a surge of resources including over 1000 Border Patrol processing coordinators and 2,500 contractors from government agencies.

The only beneficiary of the wall is the governor. It catapulted him into the spotlight and perhaps made him more known to conservatives. His version of a border wall is all about himself.

This is reminiscent of the Republican governors who transported migrant workers from red states to blue states this summer. We are looking at political theater, not legitimate immigration proposals.

There are possible solutions to our country’s immigration system that need to be implemented. Consider the bipartisan proposal from Democrat-turned-independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina. There is a pathway to citizenship for people who came to the United States as children but were not legal residents, while extending Title 42 and increasing border security. It is a serious proposal, though it may be imperfect.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/13/opinions/arizona-ducey-shipping-container-border-wall-mexico-reyes/index.html

Implications of a U.S. Border Security Wall for Immigrants and Noncitizens: The Six-Pivot Plan

In contrast, the wall that Gov. Ducey built is a publicity stunt. It causes problems, instead of solving them – and represents a monument to misguided thinking.

As the issue of immigration continues to ignite both sides of the political divide, officials are bracing for a rise in migrant arrivals as early as this week. The Department of Homeland Security has been putting in place a plan for the end of the program that includes surging resources to the border, targeting smugglers and working with international partners.

A federal district court judge had vacated the policy last month, calling Title 42 “arbitrary and capricious.” The judge said the program could continue until December 21.

The federal government has also added 10 soft-sided facilities to increase Customs and Border Protection holding capacity by over one-third since 2021, the plan states. The agency says it’s able to more than double transportation capacity for migrants.

We will scale up our ground and air transportation capabilities due to potential increases, as well as the number of flights and bus routes we have to transport noncitizens to Border Patrol sectors for processing and to remove them from their home or third countries.

According to the six-pillar plan, CBP spends 30% less time processing migrants now compared to early last year – which will help mitigate overcrowding of CBP facilities.

We are increasing referrals for prosecutions for non-citizens whoseek to evade apprehension and repeat offenders who engage in smuggler activities.

DHS also plans to continue targeting transnational criminal organizations who smuggle migrants and working with international partners and nongovernmental agencies on the border.

Dialogue of the Schumer-Klein Call to the White House on Border Security and Asymmetries: What the Administration has Done About Title 42

During the call between Schumer and Klain, the Senate majority leader raised concerns about the administration’s preparation for the looming termination and whether officials were indeed considering a new asylum policy, according to two sources with knowledge of the call.

The call – one of many that have come in from lawmakers to the White House – was indicative of the politically precarious position for Biden as officials try to fend off Republicans pounding the administration over its handling of the border and appease Democrats concerned about barring asylum seekers from the US.

Since the authority is over, border crossing will go up since authorities will no longer be able to expel them quickly.

The year-end legislative sprint currently underway has Schumer and Klain speak regularly and often. But the border issue’s emergence in discussion provides a window into a complex policy and political moment.

Schumer is just one of many Democrats who have pushed for the administration to get rid of Title 42. Administration officials have received a steady stream of calls from lawmakers as well as state and local officials, reflecting often sharply divergent views on the merits of the authority, people familiar with the matter said. The calls were all concerned about Title 42 being terminated and what that would mean for the border in recent weeks.

It has played out as officials in the Biden administration prepare for a moment where they are unsure of how to navigate. To some degree, it’s the latest phase of an effort that has long been underway, with officials keenly aware since the opening days in office that at some point the pandemic-era policy would come to an end. Personnel and technology infrastructure have been directed to key entry points, with increased levels and resources expected to be announced in the days ahead.

Asked about concerns inside the administration about the potential for a surge at the border once Title 42 goes away, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre listed off a series of personnel, processing and infrastructure efforts that have been put into place.

Jean-Pierre told reporters Tuesday at the White House briefing that he would do the work, be prepared, and make sure that the process was humane.

The Status of Immigrant Immigration Policy in the 21st Century: Implications for Border Policy and the National Security Council, the White House and the Interior Department

Still, the cross-cutting viewpoints on border policy have converged with the significant diplomatic component tied to managing a rapid shift in the countries of origin of the migrants apprehended at the border, one that has added a new layer of difficulty for the administration.

Throughout, administration officials have stressed that the only viable long-term solution will come from congressional action, noting encouragement with a bipartisan framework released in the Senate last week.

According to sources familiar with the discussions, however, the long-shot bipartisan immigration deal led by Sens. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, and Kyrsten Sinema, who recently announced that she is leaving the Democratic party and registering as an independent, is essentially dead this Congress.

The framework, which would have extended protections for Dreamers and extended Title 42, was unlikely to build momentum in the brief lame-duck session.

White House officials have also been in daily conversations with DHS officials about planning, sources told CNN. The National Security Council, which has been heavily involved in migration management amid mass movement across the Western hemisphere, has also played a critical role, sources said.

The team has been working so hard to make sure we put in place a process that is orderly and humane. And we believe in doing so, we can protect our security concerns,” national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Monday.

If adopted, the asylum proposal would be reminiscent of a policy put in place during the Trump administration that dramatically limited the ability of migrants to claim asylum in the US if they resided or traveled through other countries prior to coming to the US. No decision has been made on the proposal.

Federal officials and border communities are bracing for an increase in migrant arrivals, and still have a December 21 deadline for lifting the public health restrictions.

In response to the build-up of migrants on the Mexico side of the border, the Texas government is making its own moves to prepare for a potential surge.

In it, DHS also stressed the need for congressional action to update outdated statutes and help create a functioning asylum system, as the current one is under immense strain.

“The 21st (is) going to be a disaster. There are so many things in the pipeline, but nothing is ready (to) go,” one official said, referring to December 21 when Title 42 is set to end.

The State of the Border Security: Reducing the Number of Migrant Contacts by Moving Border Agents to El Paso and Del Rio

The secretary of homeland security stated that mass movement of people around the globe posed a unique challenge.

The outdated immigration system is under strain, and that is true for state, local,NGO, and community partners. A significant increase in migrant encounters would strain the immigration and asylum systems if Congress didn’t reform it.

The challenge will take time and additional resources, and we need the support of Congress, state and local officials, NGOs, and communities to address it.

They will move people down there if there is a surge in the valley. If there is more people crossing let’s say, Del Rio, Eagle Pass they’ll move agents over there. Now they’re moving agents to El Paso. This is not the way to secure the border,” Cuellar said Wednesday on “CNN This Morning,” adding a call for Biden to visit the border and see the situation for himself.

In the Del Rio sector, for example, officials predicted that the number of migrant encounters could double from 1,700 a day to 3,500 a day when Title 42 ends, straining overwhelmed resources in a remote area of the border.

El Paso Mayor Mike Kasparov and the DC Circuit US Circuit Court of Appeals over a Biden-Biden Border Protection Law

El Paso city officials said Tuesday they’re monitoring the situation and are in ongoing discussions with federal, state, and local partners. Mayorkas also visited El Paso on Tuesday where he met with the Customs and Border Protection workforce and local officials.

As Title 42 is about to end, the Biden administration has asked Congress for more than $3 billion, according to a source.

The White House said that if Republicans were serious about border security, they would make sure that the Department of Homeland Security had the resources it needed to build an orderly and humane immigration system.

If nonprofits are not able to handle the influx of arrivals, the city may bus migrants to other locations as they have done in the past, according to a Texas congressman.

The DC Circuit US Court of Appeals disagreed with the states’ request to intervene and threw out their request to put the ruling on hold.

They wrote that the “inordinate and unexplained untimeliness” of the states’ request to get involved in the case “weighs decisively against intervention.”

A lawsuit was brought by the American Civil Liberties Union against the program. The appeals court noted on Friday that the Republican-led states had long known that their interest in keeping the policy in force would diverge from the Biden administration’s approach to the case.

State and local officials are frightened by the sense of speed around the end of Title 42 and the uncertainty that comes with it.

In a ruling last month, US District Judge Emmet Sullivan ordered the government to end the “arbitrary and capricious” policy. He granted a request for a five-week reprieve, setting a deadline of December 21.

The December 21 deadline for Sullivan’s ruling to go into effect has made officials prepare for a surge of migrants. More than 1 million migrants have been deported under the rule which was used at the start of the Covid-19 disease to expel people before they were able to apply for asylum.

Republican-led states, in their attempts to intervene in the case, allege that allowing the policy to terminate would “cause an enormous disaster at the border.”

They argue that the “greatly increased number of migrants that such a termination will occasion will necessarily increase the States’ law enforcement, education, and healthcare costs.”

The Biden Immigration Appeals Court, Title 42 and High-Dimensional Law Enforcement: A Summary of the Appeals Court’s Decision

The Biden administration objected to the request of the states to intervene and keep the policy in place.

Here’s a look at some of the key questions and answers about the appeals court’s ruling, Title 42’s history, what’s happening on the ground and what could happen next.

The Biden administration is also appealing Sullivan’s ruling, but has said it’s continuing with its preparations to end Title 42 expulsions as ordered on December 21.

D’Agostino said that before, there was a gradual rise in migrant populations crossing the border. This time, he said, it has been rapid and over a few days.

From the beginning of the Trump administration, the border restrictions were controversial. Advocacy groups argued that officials were trying to keep immigrants out of the country by using public health as a pretext. Public health experts objected to the policy, saying it wasn’t justified.

Debate resurged after Sullivan’s November ruling, and again several weeks later as word spread of the increasing number of migrants crossing in El Paso.

Human Rights First says that since Biden took office, it has identified more than 1300 cases of kidnapping, torture, rape and other violent attacks of people who have been blocked or kicked out of Mexico.

Officials continue to believe that lifting Title 42 will increase the number of people trying to cross into the US.

Earlier this year, the policy drew attention when authorities at first were using it to turn away Ukrainians at the border, then largely started granting exceptions that allowed thousands of Ukrainians seeking refuge to cross.

Advocates argued a racist double standard was at play as many migrants from Central America and Haiti continued to be turned back under the policy. Federal officials denied that accusation and said each exemption is granted on a case-by-case basis.

Many advocates expected President Biden would lift the order as soon as he took office, given his campaign promises to build a more humane immigration system. Instead, his administration extended the policy more than a year into his presidency and defended it for months in court.

After the administration submits their response, Roberts is likely to refer the matter to the full court. The order from the chief justice said he wanted to move quickly.

The policy that allows officials to swiftly expel migrants at the US border will remain in effect until the justices rule on the emergency application. The final outcome is not reflected in the order.

The states raced to the Supreme Court in an attempt to stop the implementation of President Trump’s immigration policy, which is set to go off the books on Wednesday.

Brnovich had told the justices in court papers that they should put the lower court ruling on hold. As an alternative, he said that the justices should grant an “immediate” temporary injunction to maintain the status quo and also consider whether to skip over the appeals court and agree to hear arguments on the merits of the issue themselves.

“Failure to grant a stay here will inflict massive irreparable harms on the States, particularly as the States bear many of the consequences of unlawful immigration,” Brnovich argued.

In the case at hand, six families that unlawfully crossed the US-Mexico border and were subject to the Title 42 process brought the original challenge.

The lawyers at the American Civil Liberties Union argue in court that Covid-19 is a thinly veiled attempt to increase immigration control. “There is no legal basis to use a purported public health measure to displace the immigration laws long after any public health justification has lapsed,” said Lee Gelernt, an ACLU lawyer representing the migrant families in the suit.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said earlier Monday that the administration would have more details Tuesday on its plans ahead of the rule’s planned expiration and reiterated the US would continue to enforce its immigration laws amid the current influx.

Inside the White House, the pause on the termination will not have any effect on what have been intensive behind-the-scenes preparations for the end of the authority, according to a White House official.

U.S. Border Protection and Immigration Officials Inferred from a Final End of the Title 42 Immigration Policy in a Case with the Louisiana Supreme Court

In April of this year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the Title 42 restrictions were no longer necessary to protect public health and moved to terminate the policy.

But that effort was blocked by a federal judge in Louisiana, in a separate case brought by a group of Republican attorneys general. They argued that the CDC did not go through the proper procedures to end Title 42, and should have considered the impact on state health care systems and other costs.

Since then, immigration authorities have continued to enforce the policy for single adults and some families, expelling migrants well over two million times since Biden took office.

The White House was preparing for the program to end on Wednesday, in line with the lower court order. Border officials were thankful for the brief pause of the termination of Title 42, but were proceeding with planning anyway, two senior US Customs and Border Protection officials told CNN.

The Mexican government has been working with the US to try to stop the flow because of the anticipated end of Title 42, according to an official.

One official said policy discussions are still going on to provide other legal pathways to the Nicaraguans, Haitis and Cubans who make up a large number of encounters.

“I think there’s some that probably haven’t gotten the message and won’t until they cross,” the official said. Some people will cross.

Border Patrol Response to Title 42: The Problem is with the State, Not the U.S., but the City of New York City, Measuring Asymmetries

According to non-profits in the area, most of the migrants are from Venezuela and Haiti and are living on the streets, in abandoned homes and on sidewalks.

For over a year, Abbott has been deploying state resources to the US-Mexico border, including National Guardsmen. The move was an affront to the Biden administration and garnered widespread criticism for militarizing the border. It also fueled frustrations among members of the Guard.

Sgt. The Texas Military Department Public Affairs told CNN that the wires are temporary and will be up for an undisclosed amount of time. Archer said it was placed “to support law enforcement” and was not done in conjunction with US Border Patrol.

The National Guard generally serves in a support role and notifies US Border Patrol if they encounter migrants, so that agents can pick them up. Last year, in Del Rio, Humvees were located along the border at observation points with soldiers assigned to them to monitor for activity.

After the Texas National Guard increased its posture along the border, Democratic El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego lamented the guard’s construction of fencing and barbed wire at the border.

My concerns are becoming a reality, and that is not their role. I am very confident that it was not coordinated with Border Patrol. I have always insisted that any assistance from the state has to be part of our overall strategy and in lockstep with our own enforcement strategy,” the county judge told CNN.

Democratic New York City Mayor Eric Adams said his administration is monitoring the potential surge along the southern border in response to Title 42’s end and how Roberts’ temporary pause may impact New York City.

“We continue to closely monitor the situation regarding Title 42 and will wait to hear more from the Supreme Court,” Adams said in a statement. “But regardless of the outcome, New York City has received 800 asylum seekers in just the past four days and it’s time for our state and federal partners to act. We need financial resources to continue to serve the tens of thousands currently in our care.

New York City is expected to get a substantial chunk of a newly created $800 million pot in federal aid that’s aimed at providing relief to cities that have been overwhelmed by asylum seekers, a source close to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told CNN. Congress must pass a spending bill before the end of the year to get the extra funding.

The FEMA reimburses cities that provide food, shelter, transportation, basic health and other needs to asylum seekers. The source said Schumer increased the pot from the original $150 million to $800 million despite GOP opposition.