Former Trump Officials Put Forward Plan To End The Border Crisis

A dozen former immigration and law enforcement officials, many of whom served in the Trump administration, along with several conservative advocacy groups wrote a letter to Congress Wednesday laying out their game plan to the end the border crisis.

The newly-formed coalition, which includes conservative organizations like The Heritage Foundation and groups like the national Border Patrol union, wrote a letter Wednesday addressed to lawmakers urging that no “amnesty of any type” be included in immigration legislation come the next Congress. The plan includes making migrants ineligible for asylum if they’ve already passed through a “safe third country” on their way to the U.S., completing construction of the southern border wall, and giving states the authority to enforce immigration laws, according to the letter.

“Congress should be emboldened with the mandate to immediately legislate unflinchingly, ensuring that neither this nor any future administration is again able to weaponize loopholes in the immigration system—and defiantly refuse to follow plain law—to purposefully drive mass illegal immigration to the United States,” the letter stated.

“When the 118th Congress opens with new majorities in both chambers, it will be in large part because Americans have rejected the Biden Administration’s purposeful dismantling of our nation’s borders and our immigration enforcement infrastructure,” the letter stated.

Assuming Republicans take the majority in Congress, the plan would provide a roadmap for their policy agenda, former acting Customs and Border Protection (CBP) commissioner Mark Morgan said in a statement.

“For far too long, Republicans have talked about ‘comprehensive immigration reform,’ which translates to amnesty, or simply advocated throwing more money at the border to solve the latest crisis. Those days are over. Those policy prescriptions are a recipe for failure. If you want to truly secure the border through reducing illegal immigration, implement policies that work. We look forward to working with members to make that happen,” Morgan said.

“The opportunity to legislate has been missed in several previous Congresses but the stakes are too high for it to be missed again,” the letter read.