U.S. Rep. Scott Franklin, R-Fla., toured the southern border in Texas and New Mexico this week and took aim at President Joe Biden’s immigration policies.
Franklin was joined by U.S. Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., who leads Republicans on the U.S. House Oversight and Reform Committee, and U.S. Rep. Yvette Herrell, R-NM.
“Biden’s border crisis continues to escalate, encouraging human smugglers to profit from the administration’s open borders policies and placing migrant families and unaccompanied children at risk as they seek to come to the United States illegally,” Franklin’s office noted.
“What I saw and experienced evoked a wide range of emotions: Heartbreaking instances of young, unaccompanied children abandoned at the border,” Franklin said. “The fear and trauma of our citizens living along the border who are confronted with the drug smuggling and human trafficking operations of murderous cartels. The frustration of solid, law-abiding American citizens who feel their government has betrayed and abandoned them.”
“We must end ‘Catch and Release’ and reinstate the Migrant Protection Protocols that successfully reduced the numbers of border incursions,” Franklin continued. “Officials confirmed that only 10-12 percent of people who come here seeking asylum are deemed to have legitimate cases; the rest are sent back. By requiring them to remain in Mexico instead of being released into the U.S. while their asylum requests are adjudicated, the roughly 90 percent whose cases are false won’t risk the journey, and those with legitimate cause to seek asylum can obtain it expeditiously.”
“This isn’t an ‘anti-immigrant’ message. We are a nation of immigrants. But to remain the world’s brightest beacon of hope, we must acknowledge that a fundamental part of what makes America so attractive is our adherence to the rule of law. What’s being allowed to happen at our southern border is not immigration—it’s unabated chaos,” Franklin added
Franklin continued to target Biden on immigration while praising the policies enacted by former President Donald Trump.
“President Trump signed several executive orders to deter, slow, and in some cases stop the flow of migrants into the United States, most of which President Biden has since rescinded or revoked. The rescinded orders include commonsense policies like declaring the crisis at our southern border a national emergency; the Migrant Protection Protocols, which allowed migrants to remain in Mexico to await hearings rather than be released into the interior of the United States; allowing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to prioritize the removal of all illegal immigrants, especially those who committed crimes, posed a national security risk, engaged in fraud or willful representation before the government, or abused welfare programs; and construction of the border wall,” Franklin’s office noted. “As a result, the crisis is on track to be the worst in 20 years, according to DHS.”
First elected to Congress last year, which included defeating then U.S. Rep. Ross Spano, R-Fla., in the Republican primary, Franklin represents parts of Hillsborough, Lake and Polk Counties.
Reach Kevin Derby at kevin.derby@floridadaily.com.
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