The chairmen of the House and Senate judiciary and immigration committees sent Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson a letter Friday demanding he take immediate action to stop the “surge” of illegal entry across the southern U.S. border.
In the letter, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), House Immigration and Border Security Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), and Senate Immigration and The National Interest Subcommittee Chairman Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) state the surge is overwhelming federal agencies. They also demanded Johnson brief lawmakers on his department’s efforts to address it.
“Numerous media reports indicate that the ongoing border surge is a large-scale effort to enter the United States before this year’s presidential election,” the legislators said in a joint statement. “Tens of thousands of unaccompanied minors and family units from Central America continue to pour across the border. Additionally, thousands of Haitians and Africans are arriving at the border and claiming asylum.
“As the number of apprehensions by the Border Patrol has climbed sharply over the past year, it has put a strain on resources and the Obama Administration has failed to prudently manage detention capacity and resources, resulting in the release of many of these aliens into the United States.”
Click here to read the full text of the letter.
