It lets the government to limit the number of asylum seekers coming into the US.
Migrants Next To the US Border (Photo from The Associated Press)
Frederick, Md (KM) A federal judge has ordered the Biden Administration to stop using Title 42 when deciding whether to admit migrants into the country from the border, calling it “arbitrary and capricious.” .. The deadline set by the judge is Wednesday, December 21st.
Title 42 gives the federal government the authority to take action to slow the spread of communicable diseases in the country. In 2020, the Trump Administration used it to reduce the number of migrants coming into the US seeking asylum, claiming it was a way to slow the spread of COVID-19 infections. Critics say the Trump Administration used it to deny humanitarian relief for tens of thousands migrants through asylum.
The Biden Administration has tried to stop using Title 42, but that was blocked by a federal court in Louisiana. Some Republican-led states are pushing to keep the policy in place, arguing any increase would be harmful.
During an appearance last week on WFMD’s “Morning News Express,” Frederick County Sheriff Chuck Jenkins says dropping Title 42 as a policy for restricting the number of migrants coming into the US through the Mexican border would make a bad situation worse. “I’m, afraid that what I’m seeing these people are kind of oblivious to the crisis because it’s not in our backyard. 15 to 20,000 a day coming across this border,” he says.
Jenkins says lifting Title 42 would bring in more crime, criminal gangs and drugs. “But I think about the crime, the chaos, the violence, the gang crime, the increased amount of drugs, fentanyl, that are coming across this border, we are self destructing. And people had better take a look, wake up and make people like {Representative} David Trone do something, push this Administration to close the border now,” he says.
Congressman Trone recently announced he’s sponsoring a bill to require Customs and Border Patrol to better detect fentanyl at the border before it gets into the United States.
Despite Title 42, people still keep coming across the border. Most are from Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela, which are mostly unwilling to accept their citizens back if they apply for asylum. Mexico has agreed to accept some Venezuelans, and Cuba has agreed to accept some of its citizens back who have crossed into the US undocumented.
Regardless of what happens, Jenkins says Frederick County is not so far away from the US border with Mexico. “We’re now a border county. There’s no doubt about that. So these Democrats or any elected official that chooses to turn their heads is not being honest with themselves or the people they serve. This is going to be chaos for this country. It’s going to destroy us,” he says.
Jenkins is a Republican.
By Kevin McManus