HYDE-SMITH, COLLEAGUES DEMAND ANSWERS ON ‘OPEN-BORDERS’ EFFECT ON VIOLENT CRIME RATES
In Letter to DHS Secretary, 22 Senators Push to Overturn Enforcement Guidance Regarding Illegal Immigrants in the U.S.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), who serves on the Senate Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, is among a group of Senators raising concerns about recent violent crimes committed by illegal aliens who crossed into the United States under President Biden’s open-borders policies.
Hyde-Smith is among 22 Senators, led by U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas that asked him to immediately rescind the “Guidance for Enforcement of Civil Immigration Law” that he issued in September 2021 to Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and other department agencies.
“This misguided policy deprioritizes the removal of dangerous criminal aliens—individuals who have been convicted of one or more crimes, whether in the United States or abroad, and has resulted in further unnecessary victimization of American citizens,” the Senators said.
“The result has been predictable: By signaling that you will not enforce immigration laws, you have invited unprecedented increases in illegal border crossings,” they continued. “Your directive sends the unfortunate message that violating our country’s immigration laws is not a serious crime and will not result in any adverse civil legal actions.”
Their letter cites 16 examples of tragic crimes committed by illegal aliens across the country since 2021, including homicides, rapes, assaults, robberies, and deaths caused by driving under the influence. Senators request information on the impact of the Biden administration’s negligence on crime in American communities, including arrest and conviction rates for a range of violent crimes involving illegal immigrants.
“Under your leadership, the humanitarian crisis at our Southern border has spilled over into a crime wave impacting public safety for communities all across this nation. Strong enforcement of our nation's immigration laws will act as a deterrent and help prevent additional tragic crimes in the future,” the Senators said.
U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), James Inhofe (R-Okla.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), John Kennedy (R-La.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Rand Paul (R-Ky.), James Risch (R-Idaho), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), and Todd Young (R-Ind.) also signed the letter.
Click here to read the eight-page letter to Mayorkas.
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