CNSI Leaders Welcome Executive Focus on Border Security, Call on Congress for Long-term Legislative Solutions

restrada@monumentadvocacy.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Roberto Estrada 

Washington — The Council on National Security and Immigration (CNSI) today released the following statement after President Biden issued executive actions on asylum and the border.

"We are encouraged to see the Biden administration taking proactive steps to address the challenges at the southern border and recognize that the number of people arriving and asking for asylum is unsustainably high. While these executive actions represent an attempt to manage historically high migration and ensure the safety and integrity of our immigration system, they do not adequately address our outdated asylum and immigration processes.

“Actions to limit asylum, while unfortunate, may be necessary when the border is overwhelmed. However, without legislative changes to our asylum system, which require action from Congress, we will continue to struggle to process high numbers of border arrivals, which could have national security implications. Border agents should be able to focus on criminals, drugs, and other threats without being diverted to humanitarian responses.

"While we welcome the administration’s focus on border security, recent history has shown that executive actions are frequently temporary and subject to court challenges. These actions already have elicited promises of litigation and may be halted by the courts, as many executive actions on the border under Presidents Obama, Trump, and Biden have been. Ultimately, Congress must provide enduring solutions through legislation, as well as supply sufficient resources to implement the legislative solutions.

“As political pressure mounts ahead of the November election, lawmakers from both parties need to prioritize long overdue immigration reforms. Ultimately, Congress will need to lead on effective, sustainable, and bipartisan border policies to strengthen our border and national security.

“Earlier this year, CNSI released policy recommendations that we believe should serve as the foundation for future border negotiations. We urge Congress to exert its energy on solutions that will secure our border, treat migrants with dignity, and alleviate the existing processing backlogs.”

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