El Paso officials know they are at the center of the bullseye that is forming as the end of the Title 42 public health expulsion order draws near.
With its expiration set for Dec. 21, waves of illegal migrants are expected to flood the nation’s southern border in record numbers just before Christmas and beyond. Already, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reports as many as 2,500 illegals per day entering the beleaguered Texas city.
According to reports, the surge now has CBP releasing 892 migrants each day into the community, and 286 of those are so-called “street releases.”
Local leaders asked the Biden administration to use area military bases to house illegal migrants and ease the crushing strain on the city. They believe that the federal government can utilize the bases similar to the way they were used after the mangled U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Deputy City Manager Mario D’Agostino said that with the effective Title 42 disappearing, the community faces a “true emergency.”
He called it a “federal crisis” and believes that the federal government is obligated to step in and relieve the burden on his city.
El Paso official says illegal border crossing numbers 'are unsustainable’ days before Title 42 expires
It's the direct result of 2 years of inaction from the Biden Admin.
While Biden drags his feet, Texas will do whatever it takes to protect our state.https://t.co/XhItzAZFPw
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) December 14, 2022
Already there is an unprecedented strain on limited resources. Local homeless shelters are bursting at the seams with the thousands of daily crossings — a number that is expected to rise significantly.
Nonprofit shelters report being filled beyond capacity, and federal holding facilities face the same predicament.
Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) expressed his belief that the surge already overwhelming the city will be the “new normal” after Dec. 21. And he added it is “exactly what Democrats wanted. They’ve been asking for this for two years and here it is.”
El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego fears the worst is yet to come. What he once termed a “manageable crisis” is about to transform into an “actual crisis.”
A 1500-strong migrant caravan arrived in the Chihuahua state across the border last week, and migrants immediately crossed the border in hopes of asylum.
Title 42’s end, according to Samaniego, is expected to increase the flood of illegal migrants into El Paso to as many as 4,200 or even 4,500 per day. As local officials are well aware of, without federal intervention the numbers force CBP to release the illegals straight into the local community.
