She sought reassurance about her handling of the problem
The Biden administration stands helpless in its first immigration crisis
Biden pledged to erase the "moral and national shame" he inherited from his predecessor, that is, to separate the thousands of immigrant families that have not yet been reunited.
US Customs and Border Protection officers arrest a number of infiltrators near the US-Mexico border in Hidalgo, Texas.
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The administration of US President Joe Biden sought yesterday to reassure its handling of the first major crisis facing the presidency, which is accused of allowing the influx of thousands of immigrants, stressing that "the borders are closed."
Biden was elected after pledging to turn the page on the "Covid-19" pandemic, and address the resulting economic recession.
But after only two months in power, Republicans accused him, and some Democrats as well, that he had suggested the freedom to cross the border with Mexico, and that he was now involved in an immigration crisis, which he refuses to acknowledge.
On Sunday, Biden expressed his intention to go to the Mexican border, indicating that his administration will stress his message, which calls on immigrants not to try to reach the United States.
"We will do this and make sure that we will return what was previously applicable, which is that (immigrants) can stay in their homes and apply for them from their countries of origin," the president told reporters.
For his part, former President Donald Trump issued a statement in which he considered that his border policies were successful, and attacked Biden. Just a few weeks ago, the Biden administration turned a national victory into a national disaster. ”
On Sunday, the Minister of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayoras, said: "We are expelling families and expelling adults who are coming alone," repeating on the broadcast of four American television stations the message that "the borders are closed."
The minister, the first Hispanic to hold this position, had agreed in mid-March that an unprecedented influx of immigrants was expected, the highest in 20 years on the border between the United States and Mexico.
He was criticized for appealing to immigrants from Central America not to come to the United States "at the moment" in order to give the Biden administration the time needed to "rebuild" the immigration system that Trump had "dismantled".
"It is irresponsible," Texas Republican Congressman Michael McCall told ABC Sunday, considering that his "words" led immigrants to believe that they are welcome.
"They have caused a crisis," he added.
5,200 children are in isolation
Democratic lawmakers from this border state also denounced the government's message.
Many of the immigrants that Agence France-Presse met after their arrival confirmed that they were encouraged in some way by Biden's promise to pursue a more "humane" policy.
Therefore, the democratic administration is trying to correct its message, while avoiding talking about a "crisis" and only addressing "problems on the borders."
Last Tuesday, the president addressed the immigration candidates, saying, "I can say clearly: Don't come."
Regardless of the influx of migrants, what is controversial is the fate of children separated from their families.
Biden pledged to erase the "moral and patriotic shame" that he inherited from his predecessor, that is, the separation of thousands of immigrant families that have not yet been reunited.
But while children are no longer separated from their parents, the United States faces the problem of the large number of unaccompanied minors coming, and is finding it difficult to explain how to take care of them.
"We have made a decision not to expel the children at risk," Mayoras confirmed on Sunday on CNN.
The minister did not deny that there are 5,200 children currently being held in adult centers on the border, a number that far exceeds the peak recorded under Trump.
Difficult
Democratic Senator Chris Murphy said last Friday, after visiting one of the controversial centers, that "hundreds of children" "were crammed into large open rooms."
He wrote in a tweet, "I was forced to hold back my tears when a 13-year-old girl started crying unbearably," while "she was explaining how afraid she was when she separated from her grandmother and in the absence of her parents," who are in the United States.
"We are working day and night to transfer these children from these centers on the border to shelters run by the Ministry of Health," Mayorcas reiterated, noting that they also inherited a system "destroyed" by the Trump administration.
"We established three new centers last week," he added.
We are moving forward with our plan and it takes time, it is difficult, ”without revealing any details about this“ plan ”or setting a timetable.
On conservative Fox News Channel and also on CNN, which is close to Democrats, the minister was also questioned about the media not being allowed access to border posts where these children are.
Journalist Dana Bash, who works with "CNN", said that "under the Trump presidency, journalists were allowed to enter these centers."
Mayoras attributed the reason for imposing these restrictions to the Corona pandemic.
• The Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorcas, calls on immigrants from Central America not to come to America "at the moment" in order to give the Biden administration the time needed to "rebuild" the immigration system that Trump "dismantled".
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